THE SYDNEY STORMS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLVII, Issue XLVII, 8 March 1912, Page 2

THE SYDNEY STORMS.

SYDNEY, March 2. During the past week Sydney, says the "Post" correspondent, has been vi-sited by two phenomenal storms. A:} a result oT wliat the weatiier experts call a "rnonsoonal ■disturbance," the whole of New South Wak's and a. great part of the rest of Australia- Jibs' benefited by a copious dowiipour'oi rain, but Sydney would appear to have been the very centre, of the disturbance.' On Sunday -afternoon last A. remarkable storm burst over the city and suburbs. It- came with startling suddenness., and the thunder afid lightning was terrifying. The cloud's hung over the city like a black pall, and the thunder was so ciose overhead that it seemed to shako the buildings. The rain poured down in tropical torrents, ;in<! in a few minutes the streets were running "bankers," the tramlines being in places completely lost to sight, lint on Thursday a storm even more phenomenal in character was experienced, and the clan cf thunder was so loud that there was no doubt about it shaking some of the buildings, and people ran out of hotels and offices ■and shops in great fear. The lightning also was exceedingly vivid. The rain came down in merciless fury. Over four inches of rain fell as the result of an hour or two's downpour. The gutters and the stornnvater drains were/quite unable to carry the water away, and a large extent of damage was- done, especially in the low-lying parts. Many cellars were flooded, and the hands employed there had to turn to and bale the water out until late at night. Some of the streets were like running rivers. The water spread, for instance, right across Pitt-street, running over the iootpaths and finding its way into a number of the principal shops. There were manv exciting incidents, the chief being the shooting of a fire-ball across the eitv. "Mr. A.' J. Riley, the head «f a- large shop at the corner of George -and Bat-hurst-sts, was upstairs looking at the pffecU of the storm through a window, when he saw a great fire-ball shooting through the air. It seemed to . vanish in a long streak ot lSliush light: but?.s it came there war. a terrific: noise, "like the crack of doom," as he puts it. "In fact." he says," it .-eemed like 't-ho end of all tilings." A tram winch nad just- pulled up at the corner of the two streets was put. out of action. 'there was a groat pyrotechnic display in and around "the tram, and the passengers were in fear of their lives. Tongues o f red and blue fla-me darted from the tram at manv points. A somewhat similar thing happened to a tram at the/ intersection of Pitt- and "Bathurst-streets, and also to one near St. Mary's Cathedral. Quite a number of trams, in fact, were disahlcd. Not onlv wa s the tram service disorganised, but telecraph wire? were destroyed, and telephonic communication was interrupted. If. however, some damage has been done by the storm, it has cleaned the eitv streets better than thev have ever been cleaned by the City Council cleaning department.