FLOODS RECEDING AT WANAGEHU.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 4 February 1936, Page 6

FLOODS RECEDING AT WANAGEHU.

ROAD AND RAILWAY NOW BEING USED WANGANUI, Last Night. Owing to a high flood in the Wangaehu Valley the road and the railway were impassable for some .hours to-day. The river, which had risen very rapidly, broke its banks in several places, the farmlands in the valley being inundated. The flood waters were over the road on both sides of the bridge and between the hotel and the railway crossing at the foot of the 1 Wungaehu hill the road was under to a depth of several feet, being impassable from 6.30 a.m. until shortly after noon. A number of cars, a transport lorry ami two horse floats were among the vehicles held up, and the first one to get through, after several had tried too sooii. ventured the crossing at 12.15 p.m , the water having gone down sufficiently to make the passage fairly safe. Tnere, bad beoi. a very swift current icioss this purtirn of the road, howler, and the bitumen had been ripped up with the result li.at the road had been scoured out in several places, necessitating groat care Qn the part i.i motorists.

On the Palmerston North side of the river, the road was under from the iV.ctory to the next hill and the daiiy factory and cottages were surrounded by the flood waters. The water had entered the hotel and the ground floor was under to ;■ depth of from 12 to IS inches. The back yard was flooded and 15 greyhounds were removed from their kennels and taken up to the second floor of the hotel.

.Apart from the damage to property, the fanners have lost stock, Mr. (J. Silcox reporting that 107 of his iambs have been drowned.

At the railway bridge the river rose level with the girders and the last train to pass was at 2 a.m. The formation had been affected by the flood waters down by the railway station and no further trains passed over tor 1(3 Hours, the New Plymouth express going through at 6 p.m.

Extensive Damage About Wanganui

HEAVY STOCK LOSSES AT WANGAEHU

WANGANUI, Last Night

Extensive damage has been caused in the back country of the \Vai!otara county by slips and washouts, the loss being estimated at about £3OOO. In the Wangaimi county the Yranganui river road is completely blocked and it is difficult to obtain any reliable information as all telephone communication is interrupted. Three slips occurred on the main road to Maxwell, blocking traffic, but it is expected these will be cleared during the afternoon.

The /norning train from PnlmersUJi .North was hold up owing to m the Wangaehu valley. The water readied to tlu- girders of the railway uridgc and as a precautionary measure the train was delayed. The water is now receding arid apparently tin:re was no structural damage either to this ;>c the tra'lic bridge. The road is still blocked at Wangaehu and writer from the river is running through the first floor of the hot-;!. Losses of stock in the valley are reported to be very heavy, one settler having ''iOU sheep drowned. With the exception of a few green patches: the valley i& o. sheet of water and stock are huddled together on me higher spots.

There is considerable flooding on. the lowlying parts of Wanganiu cily. the water entering houses in places. Tho road slipping away caused a break in the city water supply which is now depending on the Westmere reservoir. A large gang is out repairing the damage. The bridge over the Ivokotu stream, four miles from Wanganui, collapsed and. the road to Raetihi is closed. A big slip at the top enci of this road is not expected to be cleared before tomorrow. The Taihape-Ohakune road is also closed and the bridge over the VV'aiouru is washed away.

Coastal Vessels Get Terrific

Battering

AUCKLAND, Last Night

Sheep were washed overboard, an icechest weighing half a ton was carried away and the deck quarters were .stove in when the lionald and the Hauturu, two of the Northern Steamship Company's vessels which arrived at Onehunga to-day, encountered the full force of the gale during the week-end. The captains of both vessels, which came from Hokianga and Pieton, stated that the storm was the severest they had ever experienced on the west coast.

The Hauturu left Pieton on Saturday afternoon and was oil' Cape Egmont early on Sunday moraine when she struck the gale from il«« soiilli-easi: which soon increased almost to cyclonic force. Solid sheets of water were forced up into the air by the strong wind and visibility was almost non-existent. At one stage the vessel was pooped by two tremendous seas which stove in the aft quarters and the galley door, shifted the standard compass, carried away the meat safe and ice-chest weighing half a ton and flooded the decks to a depth of 3 feet.

Members of the crew said that another sea of similar size would have sunk the vessel. The Hauturu fought through the gale until Sunday aftc"* being forced to heave to off Kawma.

was signalled aff Mamikau heads at 8.15 a.m. to-day and took the bar half an hour later. Her general cargo was undamaged. Captain Jackson Jowler never left the bridge for 48 hours. Four sheep were washed overboard and twenty died while the Ronald was riding out the gale outside Manukau Heads from early on Sunday morning until to-day.

Wairarapa Surveys Its Losses

SEASIDERS MAROONED MASTERTON, Last Night. In bright, warm sunshine Wairarapa residents to-day surveyed the widespread damage resulting from Sunday's storm. In and around Masterton the rivers had fallen considerably by this afternoon, while much of the surface water had disappeared. Slips and washouts, however, rendered many back country roads, particularly towards the east coast, impassable. It is anticipated that in some cases it will take a week or two to clear the debris.

About twenty Masterton families are isolated at Castlepoint, a popular seaside resort, as fourteen miles of the road from Castlepoint to Masterton is unnogotiable even to horses, and it will be necessary to pack foodstuffs across country.

The fears entertained by Lower v niiey settlers of a serious Hood were realised to-day, when the waters from the swollen northern rivers readied the low-lying country around Lake Wairarapa. The lake was rising steadily to-day but fortunately the outlet at the lake ferry is still open, allowing the waters to run freely. The settlers had sufficient warning and it is not anticipated that there will be any serious slock losses. A serious Hood in January or February is almost unprecedented in South Wairarapa. To dale for this financial year the Masterton County Council has already spent £3OOO repairing damage to roads as a result of floods and heavy rani, and is now faced with further heavy expenditure, the bridge on the Langdale road having collapsed and several roads are blocked.

Restoring Telegraphic Communication

WELLINGTON, Last Night

Although there is scarcely a telegraph route in the North Island which has not been affected by ,the gale, hopes are entertained by the Post and Telegraph Department that the delay in communication to-morrow will not be appreciable. An official said to-night that Wellington had then been able to get into communication with all the principal towns in the North Island. Temporary repairs had been effected, he said, but the permanent repairs would take some days. Wellington was working on four outlets to Auckland, two via the West Coast and two via the East Coast, and it was hoped to obtain additional outlets to Auckland early to-morrow morning.