CYCLONE AT COOKTOWN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13398, 29 January 1907, Page 6

CYCLONE AT COOKTOWN.

THE WHOLE TOWN DAMAGED.

DETAILS BY MAIL.

The most disastrous calamity that lias eier befallen Cook town was experienced during Friday night and Saturday (sa.ys the Sydney Morning Herald of Wednesday last). On Tuesday and Wednesday the heat was abnormal for this town, registering 102 degrees in the shade in some places, and 90 degrees in others. On Thursday a good downpour of rain cooled the atmosphere, but on Friday it was very evident that something unusual was about to happen. lii the afternoon the barometer began to fall, and very dirty weather set in. Indications were sir that Captain Thomson, of the steamer Aramac, decided not to put to sea until Saturday morning. During the night it began to blow heavily, and the wind increased in violence as the day wore on. The first sight that met the gaze of those early astir was that the municipal baths had"collapsed, and it transpired that the lessee, Mr. Frank Guisler, who slept in the building, had had a very narrow escape, owing to falling debris, from which he extricated himself and dropped into the river. Then it was noticed that the balcony of the Shamrock Hotel had blown away and the street was .strewn with limbs of trees. This, however, was only the beginning of one of the most violent cyclones that have visited the extreme north for some years. As the glass was still falling, Captain Thomson decided to further secure the Aramac, by putting out more lines. Upwards of 18 lines and two springs were used to secure the ship to the shore. The wind, still increasing in velocity, caused one or two lines and both springs to carry away, but steam was kept up and the anchors were ready for immediate, use. As noon approached there was no sign of abatement, and roofs and balconies of buildings began to give way before the gale, which increased in fury. At about four o'clock the Masonic Hall, a two-storeyed building, was blown down. The semaphore on Grassy Hill disappeared, and the boys' and girls' State schools were removed bodily from their blocks in quick succession. The cyclone had now apparently reached its height, and from five o'clock till eight o'clock it raged furiously, wrecking the greater part of the town. The Roman Catholic Church was completely demolished, and the convent and school wore unroofed. The roof of Miss Timothy's drapery store was ripped off and alighted with a crash on Messrs. John Clunn and Sons' stores, which i immediately collapsed. The principal of the j firm and several employees were within at ' the time, securing the stock, and with difficulty they extricated themselves. The Presbyterian Church, recently acquired by the Oddfellows' Society for £400. next became a tangled mass of iron and timber, and the top storey of the Edinburgh Hotel, close by, was blown away. The roofs and balconies of the Commercial, Captain Cook, Sovereign, Great Northern Club House, Shamrock. New Guinea, Courthouse, and Carlton Hotels were torn off. Churn's bulk store at the wharf wa.s demolished. Weiss' huge tank, containing 75 tons of water, leased by Mr. Quilliam for supplying ships, was toppled over with the. force of the wind. The Council Chambers, "wharf sheds, Church of England and rectory, Methodist Church and parsonage, Federal Hall, and Messrs. Westcott and Savage's wore more or less unroofed, while nearly all private residences were ■ either completely razed to the ground or rendered uninhabitable.

Captain W. C. Thomson, of the steamer Aramac, in the course of an interview, said that the hurricane "was the severest he ever experienced, and the town was practically in ruins. There was no indication whatever of the approaching storm until Friday night. On Saturday morning the weather wis very thick, and neither the town nor the beacons could he seen from the vessel, and the glass fell rapidly. When matters got serious the Ladies and children were put ashore. The wind was then blowing with hurricane force, and galvanised iron and debris were blowing in all directions. The Aramac left as quickly as possible, but there were numbers of evidences of big. destruction caused by the storm. In leavin" Cooktown the Aramac fouled a tree wit*'her propeller, which delayed her departure slightly. The hurricane seemed to originate inland.