DELAYS TO TRAINS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18678, 7 April 1924, Page 10

DELAYS TO TRAINS.

THE MAIS TRUNK LINE. LANDSLIP AT KARAKA. LONG JOURNEY NORTHWARD. \ THE RAILS NOW CLEARED. All traffic -on the main railway line south of Drury was considerably disorganised on Saturday. and yesterday morning by a landslip ■which occurred on Saturday morning in an embankment between the Taraka and Paerata, and about a mile from Karaka. The slip came down on Saturday shortly before mid-day, one side of a new embankment falling in and burying the line with soft clay substance, estimated • at well over 100 tons. The incoming trains on Saturday afternoon were the Mercer train and the Thames and Rotorua expresses. The two expresses were joined at. Pukekohe, and the combined train reached the slip, which was over a chain in length, in the middle of the afternoon. The passengers alighted and - walked past the . obstruction. , The train from Papakura to take them on to Auckland had not- then arrived, and most of the passengers walked on to Karaka station. - After an hour and a-half's wait the train arrived and picked up the travellers, reaching Auckland at 7.30 p.m. Heavy rain was tailing while the transferring operation was in progress, and conditions were thus very uncomfortable. A similar procedure had to be adopted for all other trains. Relief workers were busy clearing . the slip during Saturday night, and the line was open for traffic yesterday morning, the Main Trunk express passing through after 11 o'clock. A 24-hours' journey was experienced by the passengers from Wellington on the Main Trunk express. The first delay was at Taihape, where the train stopped for over three hours on account of slips south of Ohakune. The Taihape-Taumarunui section of the line was covered at a very slow pace. The utmost care was taken in rounding the sharp curves, while the vibration set up by the passing train was reduced to a minimum by the slow rate. The train was four hours late in leaving Taumarunui, and waited again at Mercer and Paerata, until the slip near Karaka was cleared. As soon as this was done the train passed slowly through the cutting, 'and reached Auckland.at 12.30 p.m., a full day and night after leaving Wellington, and almost six hours late. The passengers had a very trying trip, and the womenfolk were especially relieved to reach Auckland , safely. .No other slips occurred on the South line yesterday, and the outward Main Trunk train was despatched to time. The line from Auckland to Taihape was reported to be clear last evening. Two small slips occurred on the Maungaturoto-Huarau line yesterday, but these are expected to be cleared without much difficulty. The work of clearing the debris at the slip ait Newmarket, outside the Parnell tunnel, has been continued, and it is hoped that the double line will be clear for traffic this morning. The spot is being carefully watched in case another fall should occur. The suburban trains were running behind time on Saturday, as only one line was available.

RAIN IN THE CITY.

FURTHER THREE, INCHES. BAROMETER STILL HIGH. DOWNPOUR AT AVONDALE. - ~1, .. ' ' i . (v. Although the rainfall in the city , was heavy during the week-end, no damage of any consequence was reported. In the low-lying districts of Edendale and Ringsland, three dwelling houses were almost entirely surrounded by water. At the foot of St. Alban's Avenue, a fairly extensive area was submerged,- and there were other lagoons of lesser area in - the neighbourhood. Avondale experienced a deluge of rain on Saturday morning, and for about three hours the low-lying streets were converted into turbulent watercourses. - Although no actual record of the amount .of rain which fell is available, residents regard the downpour as the heaviest ever experienced since settlement took place. One effect of the storm was that a great body °* water poured in a wide sweeping torrent from the higher ground to the shopping area on the Great- North Road. No very great material damage was done, but the occupiers of five shops on the main road had an anxious time. The water from the bank at the back found'its* way into the buildings and flowed across the floors in a stream to a depth of four to five inches, and poured out through the front doors to tho roadway. Some of-., the stocks, particularly that of Mr. Westren, draper, suffered a ■ certain amount of damage,At the height of the storm the water tables were quite unequal to the call made upon them. Some idea of the volume of water sweeping across the borough may be gained from' the fact that a stack of bricks left at the top end of Brown Street was toppled over, and the bricks swept down and scattered in all directions about the Great North Road. The storm, which commenced about 10 a.m., began to subside about 1 p.m., and later in the afternoon settled down to a "steady rain. This continued all day yesterday and well into the evening. During the week another three inches ' were added to the already ■ heavy month's rainfall,;, which for the six davs is 7.40 in., or nearly sin. in excess of the average for April. The rainfall for the past few days is reminiscent of the wet weather experienced at Auckland during February, 1917. _ The rainfall _ for that month, 12.67 m., is the heaviest experienced at Auckland for 70 years. The rainfall for the whole in 1917 was also a record, being 74.57 in., compared with the average yearly rainfall of 43.71 in., and the lowest yearly - rainfall of 28.14 in. The barometer is not being affected by the unusual conditions. It has been practically steady for a week, at about 30.15 inches, the reading, which was recorded last night. .........

HEAVY RAIN GENERAL.

WAIHOU RIVER RISES. LIGHTNING WRECKS TANK. Reports from country centres -were received during the week-end as follow— Te Aroha. —The Waihou River rose and flooded low-lying land. During, a thunderstorm, a tank on My. Leonard's house at Hungahunga «was struck by lightning and destroyed. 1 Hamilton.— rain has fallen, and outdoor fixtures for Saturday were postponed; Cambridge.The Waikato River shows a considerable rise. No serious damage has been done. Waimauku.—A large apiary in the valley has suffered considerably. . Neighbours, did their best and saved a large quantity of honey and about 25 - hives. The bees were naturally angry, and their rescuers did not come through unscathed. Pukekohe.—The low country and showgrounds are under about 3ft. of water, and there is about 4ft. or sft. of water on the Buckland Road. Thames.Heavy rain fell, but no damage has been done. Te Puke.—There has been considerable rain. The rivers are much swollen. No damage has. been done. Tauranga.— damage of any ' consequepce has been done, 7 ' Rotorua.—During the last 36 hours, 3.25 in. of rain has fallen. It is stilHrainfng heavily. There is no news of any roads being blocked. •