THE FLOOD AT WESTPORT.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 3863, 12 June 1873, Page 4

THE FLOOD AT WESTPORT.

(Westport Times, June 6.) Tuesday last will be long remembered in Westport as a day of dire disaster. Of all tne misfortunes heretofore occurring from sea and river encroachment, none have happened *0 suddenly or resulted in so much loss and destruction of property as the flood that came roaring down the Duller on Tuesday morning. On the previous day the rain had fallen heavily, and continued all night, but the river had not perceptibly risen. Few therefore who went quietly to their bods dreamed of or had the slightest presentiment of the trouble impending. At six o’clock on Tuesday morning the river had scarcely risen more than a foot or so, but towards daylight the water rose rapidly, and the river became a raging and boiling torrent. The soft sandy bank along Wharf street, loosened and broken up on the surface by traffic, and undermined by the action of current and tide, soon showed symptoms of giving way, and dwellers in bouses along the river bank, hurriedly roused up, found their property in instant jeopardy. The first place to suffer was Frank and M'Farlane’s blacksmiths’shop, at the end of Wallabi street, which toppled over into the river, carrying With it a good portion of the stock of iron and Working implements of the proprietors. The gap thus made soon widened, and the instant removal of the small block of buildings on the river bank between Wallabi and Bright Streets, was necessary, the inmates having scant time to hurry out their portable property. Along Wharf street also the river bank kept tumbling away in tons weight, and it was seen that every house there was doomed. About this time too, Eiley’s coal wharf with some twelve tons of coal was carried away, and fears were entertained that the schooner Aurora, moored at the Cobden Street wharf, but unladen and unballasted, would be carried out over the bar, there being no steamer in the river to tow her to the lagoon for safety, even had the passage scross been practicable against the force of the increasing torrent. Chains, anchors, and lines were brought into requisition and the craft moored as safely as practicable alongside the wharf, against which she chafed and rubbed dangerously, but at the same time formed a breakwater protecting a little what was still left of the river bank below, and giving a little more time for the saving of property. Meanwhile the work of demolition Aped. Goods and trade stocks were being hurriedly carried out pell mell, and houses knocked to pieces in reckless fashion. At the Empire Hotel all moveable articles were carried into the Masonic Hall, twenty or more men at the same time knocking the hotel building to pieces. All along Wharf street and Molesworth street the same work was going on, and the excitement was intense. About nine o’clock Mr Tardley’s cottage at the end of Bright street toppled over and sailed towards the bar, where it broke up, mingling with the wreck floating from houses farther up stream. All day long men worked and strove with unfailing, though oftentimes reckless, energy to save somewhat from the over encroaching waters. Goods, furniture, boards, iron, and a hundred dismembered odds and ends cumbered the streets, drays, heavily laden, were driven recklessly to and fro, while the crash of falling buildings, and the busy clink of chisel and hammer was nearly drowned by the noise of rushing waters. So the time sped on, until with the lapse of one short winter day, a score or more of buildings had gone down amid irretrievable ruin. Nor was this all the damage. Those who had time to look about them saw with dismay that the river was encroaching steadily on the bank between Cobden and Broham streets, and to a slighter extent upwards towards Wakefield street wharf. Huge masses of earth and roots of trees were continually falling over into the turbid stream, and fears arose that the Nelson street wharf would be cut off from the bank and the protecting stone groin below undermined. About sight p.m. the first event happened. The wharf newly built, compactly put together, tough and strong in all respects as good work and material could make it, was carried away like a structure of reeds, and the water came Surging and whirling close up to the comer of Mrs Smith’s Wharf Hotel, from which previously all furniture had been hurriedly carried away. The encroachment here necessitated the pulling down of two adjacent cottages owned by Mr Carruthers and Mr Stephenson, and a little later on efforts were made to save the wharfinger’s office, but that too made a sudden plunge riverward, and was seen no more. The stone groin stood well all day, but about eventide many lon* of stone drifted away from the point. While this happened up stream the bank was still melting away towards the river mouth, and great efforts were made to save the Clarendon Hotel and W. J. Patterson’s store at the opposite comer. These buildings were pulled down piecemeal and the materials piled in the street, as also Henri Pain’s cordial factory; Spence’s store on the same block having been pulled down earlier in the day. Luckily the rain had stopped, and a brief gleam of sunshine in the afternoon, had been succeeded by a fine moonlight night, and thus work was not stayed until men and horses were utterly exhausted. About 11 p.m., it was seen that the flood was abating, and early risers on the following morning gained such slight consolation as they might from knowing that danger for the time was stayed. Still the prospect was mournful m the extreme. The streets were all cambered with debris, and much work remained to be accomplished. On Wednesday the day was fine, and a great portion of the material was removed to places of safety. Allottees of sections in Palmerston street were only too glad to have a bit of solid S round whereon to pile the mins of their onses, while those who wanted sections and had them not, were vexed with exceeding wrath at the utter trifling shown by Provincial authorities in dealing with their easily adjusted claims. On Wednesday, at the urgent request of many sufferers, a letter was prepared and very numerously signed, begging Mr Warden Giles and the Provincial Engineer to telegraph to Nelson, asking that discretionary powers might be given them to locate Sufferers upon such sections as they might deem advisable—either unallotted sections or on the reserves, anywhere in fact, for safety. The damage done has been variously estimated at from ten to fifteen thousand pounds. Taking into account the actual loss of property, destruction of goods, and suspension of business, the latter may possibly seem extreme, hut it must be also considered that household property throughout Westport has been seriously depreciated in value. Not a single Section at present occupied may be considered safe, and the marketable value of buildings is merely nominal. The situation at present is most critical. The river has to some slight extent cut in beyond the new township, at Christy’s and Dowds’ cultivation paddocks, and may, upon the recurrence of the next flood, make still greater havoc. Prom Wakefield street wharf downward to Smith’s hotel at the river end of Nelson street, the bank has been washed away at an angle, which if extended, would cut midway through Cobden and Lyttelton streets towards the bench, a course which the river will beyond doubt soon take. The distance between Palmerston, from opposite the school-house to the river bank, has been thus reduced to little more than a stone’s throw, while the remnant of the lower township below Cobden street corner stands upon a rotten point of sand and buried fascines, having no protection from either sea

or river. I The properties destioyed or damaged by hasty removal on Tuesday were as follows; —Gilmer Brothers, Clarendon Hotel, Spence Bros, store, William J. Patterson’s store, Henri Pain’s cordial factory, W'. Struther’a store and residence, Anthony Michael’s store, pulled down; Frank and M’Farlane’s smith shop, washed away ; Bank of New South Wales, and F. White’s chemist shop, removed ; E. Yardle.v’s cottage, washed away ; F. Peterson’s boot shop, pulled down ; W. Hannah and Captain Leech’s houses, removed ; H. Noil’s bakery, Blaxall’s Boyal Oak Hotel, pulled down ; Gothard’s butchery, Dickenson’s tobacconist shop, moved ; Tonks and Hughes’ Empire Hotel, F. M’Farlane’s house and butchery, W. Lavotto’s store, 1 Cook’s All Nations Hotel, pulled down; M’Leod’s wharf, Cobden street, destroyed ; Nelson street wharf, and wharfingers’ office,

Biley’s coal wharf and coals, carried away ; Carruthers and Stephenson’* cottage*, pulled down; road way front of Smith’* Wharf Hotel washed away, making removal of building necessary. . , _ __ Across the river the road in front of T. N. King’s hotel has been washed away, and traffic stopped for the present at Bradshaw’s, Mr King is now cutting a new track through ms paddocks. At Addison’s the flood did little or no injury, and at the Terraces the effect was slight. The Orawaiti river was much swollen, but the current forced a way out to the northward, and thus probably saved Westport from the danger always impending of the two rivers again joining at the beach. The Orawaiti bridge was not damaged.