NEW PLYMOUTH ROAD BLOCKED.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XIX, Issue 1948, 8 April 1924, Page 5

NEW PLYMOUTH ROAD BLOCKED.

VISITORS TO TE KUITI HELD UP. On Saturday a big slip occurred on the New Plymouth road just this side of the Awakino tunnel. A great quantity of earth, mixed with logs which had broken away higher up the hill, fell down a depression in the hillside, light across the road. The car from New Plymouth was unable to connect with the bus from T'e Kuiti owing to the slips and floods at Uruti. The slip near the tunnel was cleared but another occurred on Mount Messenger where the road itself apparently fell away. The Public Works men were put on to cut the face back, and it was expected that the road would be clear by this afternoon. A number of through travellers and visitors to Tc Kuiti were held up by the slips on the Te Kuiti-New Plymouth road, and the rumours of trouble on the railway lines. Mr Pavitt, the stationmaster, t<ild, a Chronicle reporter yesterday that he was inundated with telephone inquiries on Sunday as to the state of the lines. Speaking of this section, i.e., from Ohakune to Te Kuiti, and Te Kuiti to: Frankton, he could say that all was clear and the tracks were holding well. A number of trains had been late owing to having reduced speed at the bad places further down, and this had probably lent colour to the rumours. Messrs Deare, Insull, and Dempsey, of the Taranaki Education Board, who had intended to: motor through to New Plymouth on Saturday, were held up by the news that the road was impassable, and were forced to stay in Te Kuiti. Messrs Dempsey and Insull went on by the Auckland express to Marton on Sunday night, intending to catch the train there for New Plymouth. Mr Deare was forced to remain in Te Kuiti until such time as lie could get through with his car: Mr and Mrs Benlow, of New Plymouth, arrived here by car from Auckland on Saturday and were similarly held up.