The Northern Advocate Daily MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1936. NEW ZEALAND’S VISITATION

Northern Advocate, 3 February 1936, Page 4

The Northern Advocate Daily

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1936. NEW ZEALAND’S VISITATION

Registered for transmission through the post as a Newspaper.

It is clear, from reports received, that tin* 'North Island suffered, during the week-end, one of the most disastrous storms in its history. The people of Northland, and of Whangarei* in particular, no doubt believed they* were being made the special sport of the elements, but they will probably discover, when the sum total of storm wrack is known, that their experience bears favourable comparison with that of the greater part of the North. Island. It is beyond question that the Dominion was the centre of a meteorological disturbance unusual in these latitudes. The rainfall was phenomenal, while the force of the gale which ravaged wide areas was terrific, and completed the work of destruction done by floods. At time of writing, it is impossible to obtain more than an outline of the damage done throughout the Island, but enough is known to prove that very serious loss has been suffered, publicly and privately. Telegraphic communication has been shattered, and. as affecting Whangarei—and its experience is no doubt general—the only link with the cities of the Dominion is the radio telephone, which is befng used for the despatch of urgent messages only. The impossibility of obtaining details of the damage done throughout the islands will therefore be apparent. The destruction of roads and bridges and the damage done to railway lines will make a heavy call upon the Dominion exchequer, while property owners and others will have to meet extraordinary expenditure at a time when they can ill afford to do so. So far as Northland is concerned, it is evident that very serious damage has been done, the flooding-in many areas being described as the worst within memory. floats have been so badly blocked, as in the case of the Russell road, for instance, that it will take a week or more to clear »them. The railways, too, have suffered severely, and the destruction of bridges means that no uninterrupted traffic will be possible for some days. In the Kaitaia and Kerikeri districts, to mention only two localities, the flooding is reported to be the worst in memory, and it is particularly distressing to hear that loss of life has occurred, a young man having been drowned at Kaitaia. Northland has paid a heavy flood toll during recent months, and it is a matter for mutual commiseration that another visitation should have occurred on such a scale of seriousness. It was only on Saturday that we urged the meed for hastening the reafforestation of the Dominion, not of Northland only, though it is urgently in need of it, to protect the country against a disaster such as has overtaken a large section of New Zealand. There is no question that the clearing of high land, especially hillsides* of the bush and vegetation which once covered them, and which made the soil act as a sponge during heavy rain, releasing the water gradually, is largely responsible for the flooding which is now taking place. It stands to reason that when a phenomenal volume of rain, such as occurred during the past week-end, falls on watersheds which have been made as bare as a galvanised roof there must be a violent onrush of water which streams and rivers, too often blocked by willows and other obstructions, are unable to carry away. The consequence is inundation of low-lying areas. This latest disaster will surely hasten the work of re-afforestation