GALE DAMAGE

Hokitika Guardian, 10 August 1938, Page 5

GALE DAMAGE

SERIOUS NATURE '■ . ' TELEGRAPH LINES DOWN '• ' The gale that was experienced yesj terday* afternoon caused apparently only minor damage in the • town but it . would .appear to have resulted in much greater damage in other centres/ GREY DISTRICT DAMAGE.. . (Per Pres» Association—Copyright). GREYMOUTH,. August 9. ; ' A fierce northerly gale with ; .heavy rain swept Greymouth and surrpunding districts to-day causing .considerable damage.

A guy rope on the Taylorville sus-. pension’' bridge was snapped by thq violence of the as the bridge is now unsafe,'workmen of the Brunner Borough barricaded the approaches. So great was the force of the. gale that the. bridge was lifted fully six, feet into, the air, badly twisted; and tie rods were broken. Mr G. Smith, manager of the Btilhner collieries, .assisted by his engineers; minors, and /borough workmen,' attempted, to rig a new: guy wire’ to prevent further damage;-but linger .the oonditiohS; the'task’ t^as' an impdfisible oh ( e and repairs’ wiltnot/be possible until toymorrow. In the meantime the bridge Is closed to traffic: The suffered severel/ because of 1 slips and .tYiil. ’be * closed a|l‘ v dJi>" to-iflbrrow. Hopes ; A r fi' entertaih'fed ‘ that the road can be night. It: it' 11 ndepstood“tHsi & the Le/is" Pass ros'd is.'also'blocked' Electric power and light were cut •off .in Greymouth earl/ this"afternoon when a- wifeless mast crashed across lines in Shakespeare road.; The break was repaired jiboiit an houi* later. Another: serious interruption ;to the electric power supply was hauled when a sheet of iron fell, across lirieV'rfdar the Dobson mine, '-and it was 5 -home time before the trouble, which’ I, affected the whole of the .northern' area of the Ctrev .Electric Pon ; er Board, was reme-

died. Much minor ' datmige to’fences a fjd ' wireless masts'in the■ town ’area, is reported. 1, ’• ; ■ ■ . .• Practically no. telegraph!c cbmmunication Jwas : bneratirig ■ this I .’afternoon at Grovmohth because of the . damage done by the storm.' , 1 ip the Bui-, lor Oorgd and in ■ the Reoftoh • and Hwhitika, .’districts were all affected mainly, hv fallen drees; The ’ P/t' a/d Department , brought into onmntiop • rad ir> 1 comrrmnica t ion to deal wrilh urgpntfrtraffic;; rr- i/V';, ~■/ \ 7 • Vs ' J "T/v vf' /t,7 " DAMAGE AT CHRISTCHURCH. - CHRISTCHURCH, August'lo., .. Jelephohe and/ telegraph services wer/i' 'serioufly disrupted, /electric power-lines were broken, and the supply cut" off irn'many areas, roofs were torn frohi' buildings, and'."trees were uprooted' bv '. a ' fierce:' north-westerly gale which sprang up y ay Inibmr irig,' and "swept the' West Coast, and most of the northern part of'the' Sf)«th! Island. The' most serious ‘ihteirimftrtm' !to ; communicatiohs' was' baiised„ ; hy the ’ 'hreahing /of linefc 15 miles', north: of Waiau and 'on the circuit via Cheviot v ( No through , cirrpitS were’ available, except' by the YVest Const, and this .circuit was 'also reported to he'veiry shhky and handled only a i few .isolated rnessn ges. The buik' of' the 'traffic to : Wellington was sent by-emergency radio' equipment, two outward ' and two inward channels being; used. . > ; r , ■ 7;; * gale :At Wellington. 7 ,7• WELLINGTON, August-9. '• . ‘A very boisterous north-west gale is ,being experienced. Gusts at' Kelburh reached 72 miles an h'ojir: there /as a pharp,/.heavy, fall of. hail tonight. 77 fi ff 77 7, :7 n ,; 7' . ASHBURTON DAMAGE. 7 1 ASHBURTON, August 10. . Widespread dantagq.was caused yesafternoon' the . Heaviest north-west, gale experienced for years. The electric' system' ’ /as dislocated in practically every ■ district of the county,. mainly ‘through tree's ’ falling across the lines. Thousands of trees ar/down-in the- County* Council plantations, In one area, beside the main south' pad at Promote, 150 trees went .down. yj ,-t (ThePqWer "Board staff h'ad- ah inehviable time.-working late into tho night in an endeavour to ! rectify the damage.vWdrk was hampered ' by the fact; (hat the telephone lines were also down,- and the office lost contact with i the. gangs, to rove about-the County finding broken wires and replacing'them as-‘they went. It is 'expected that all thqtservices will be res/ored by to-night.

„ Motorists had dangerous journeys, some, narrowly missing being crushed by, fajlirtg.l trees, while' one man was penned, in between two .trees .that fell ih front and behind. There was. little trouble with' electric service in the borough.; A tree carried away a high tension' line, and some areas of;, the town were without light for ia; brief period.' 1,1 'The force of the. gale was particularly ,felf l beor the mountains, and the social hall at the public wbrks l,trrigation camp at. Klondyke was swept away, the rpof cutting the power lines. A’cowshed at Staveley was blown away, and actually hung on top of a power pole. Conditions are bright , and calm to-day.