“Old Man” Floods

Northern Advocate, 25 March 1937, Page 2

“Old Man” Floods

Early Days Of Kaitaia

During his residence in Kaitaia, the late Colonel Allen Bell missed no opportunity for interviewing old residents, and in; collecting from every available source facts about the past history of the district. He left in manuscript form some interesting notes about the early floods, written probably about three years ago. Two floods stood out in the memory of the earliest settlers. One was known as Matthews’ flood, and occurred in 1875 or 1876. It derived its name from the fact that Matthews’ Bros, lost 300 sheep. The dead sheep were found afterwards in scrub and against trees and fnces, and the Maoris were paid 2/6 per head for each carcase brought to the boiler at the mission station. In those days, all the Maoris on the Kaitaia Flat had small canoes for use in time of flood. It was not exceptional for it to rain heavily and continuously for a week or ten days. Matthews’ flood came down in a sudden wave, and an old Maori chief who was washing potatoes on the riverbank at the time had to flee for his life. Loudon’s flood occurred in 1865 or 1866. It was remembered by that name because the Maoris who were living near Awanui, had been induced by Loudon to plant large areas in pota- j toes for shipment to the Thames goldfields,. and had their crops destroyed by the flood. During Matthews’ flood, the of the Kaitaia town flat on the eastern side /of Commerce Street was under water, with the exception of about an acre near Mr.. L. H. Bell’s house, and on the western side all the land was under water with the exception of a strip lying between Taaffe’s Garage and Te Reinga Street. The whole of Brent’s farm on the eastern side of the Awanui Road was covered by the flood, and the water flowed from the Kaitaia River to the Whangatane, some going down the side of the Awanui Road and lightly covering Mr C. J. Puckey’s paddock. Most Ctf iGallagher’s Flat was fairly dry. The land between Whangatane and the hills was always under water in the rainy season. In the very early days, the whole of the flat lying between Waikaruke Bridge and Awanui was covered with high tea-tree and its general condition was very wet indeed.

Over lOt) years ago, the work of constructing a spillway down the Whangatane was started, but was afterwards abandoned. The work was supervised by the Rev. Joseph Matthews and Mr G. Puckey, and what has since been done by the Land Drainage Department, follows the course they adopted. The Maoris offered to open up the spillway for 40 blankets, but the missionaries neither had the blankets nor the money with which to procure them. It was thought by Colonel Bell that the original course of the river, known as the spillway, was blocked by the late Mr Jack Wells about 57 years ago, as the water going through the cut endangered the Awanui Road. . *ln his notes, the late Colonel Bell observed that the floods of today were not comparable in severity to the floods of the very early times.