DAMAGE BY THE FLOOD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18888, 22 December 1924, Page 12

DAMAGE BY THE FLOOD.

m i LOSSES AT JIASTERTON. POWER STATION SUFFERS. REPAIRS WILL COST £10,000. GAS SUPPLY MAINTAINED. STOCK DROWNED ON FARMS.

TB7 TKLEGRAPH.—OWN CORRESPONDENT,] MASTERTON. Saturday. The-tropical storm which has vented its fury on Mister ton continuously for 72 hours abated this morning. The rain on Friday night was not so heavy as that which caused the town to be flooded on Friday morning. A survey to-day of the affected districts reveals that apart from damage done to homes at Landsdowne, where the dam burst, the most serious loss has been incurred by the Wairarapa Electric Power Board as the result of the Korarau works being completely swamped. Before the current can be re-established the generators have to be dissembled, dried out, and reassembled, and to do this the board has to send the affected machinery away, as it has no current to put through it. The estimate of the loss to the ratepayers in this direction is £10,000. The board'b Masterton substation, which fs a concrete building erected over the Town Creek, also suffered. Large quantities of electrical appliances stored on the ground floor were damaged by water when.the creek overflowed. When the rain commenced again on Friday it was feared that thtire was to be a repetition of the pravious night's flood, but fortunately it developed into a steady southerly of lesser capacity than on Thursday. It flooded the creeks, however, keeping them bank high, but the town esc/iped further swamping. Fire Brigade Saves Situation. With ttie town relying absolutely on the gasworks for light and power anxiety was caused when an adjacent creek burst its banks and invaded the gasworks scokehonse. Inch by inch the water crept up and when the fire brigade arrived with a pumping engine the flood water was within three'inches of the furnaces. The whole of Thursday night was spent working the pump at full speed, and the town thereby was savtsd from total darkness and the suspension of industry. The public hos{tital cellars, the machine rooms at the ocal sash and door factory, and the brewery were also invaded, and here, too, the fire brigade did yeoman service in reducing the inconvenience) to a minimum. Reports from fanners disclose that considerable damage has been done. Fences have been destroyed and crops flattened. Haystacks which the owners had not had time to thatch were much damaged, and many fields were covered with three feet of water, the silt from which will have a bad effect on pastures. ■ ■'-■■ Heavy Losses of Sheep.

There were several slips on the roads, but not large enough to stop traffic. About two .miles, of fencing Were washed away. At Wangaiehu the fields were under water, and it is expected that many sheep have been lost. The boundary fence between Woodlands and Maungahina (Messrs. D. and J. McMenzie's properties) was down for 'a mile. Pike Bros. (Te Whitf) lost 40 woolly hoggets on Thursday night. They y had placed 2000 woolled sheep, including wethers and hoijgets, in a holding paddock at Te Ore Oro, through which a drain ran. A huge iVolume of from the drain and , Pike Bros, considered themselves fortunate in not suffering a much heavier, loss. Small numbers of sheep were lost on many farms at Bideford. Mr. J. L. Murray, of Wainuioraapu, who suffered heavily in the last storm, lost every floodgate, culvert and bridge on the station, while chains of fencing are level with the ground. Mr. Murray is also owner of land adjacent to the Landsdowne dam, and where it burst through the damage is considerable. He estimates his loss at £2000. • Road communication from Bideford is blocked, as also is the Gladstone East Coast Road to Flat Point,-and many district highways connecting the lower valley with the main road through Wairarapa. Water Extends lor Miles. .Stock losses have been reported from Tawaha, Papawai, Tauherenikau, Featherston, , Martinborough, and Greytown. Mr. J. H. Percy, of Tiridale, is one of the heaviest losers, 100 of his sheep succumbing j ~.■;■-'■■ "-.-. '■' •_ '* At the Soldier Settlement at Ahiakouka fences Mere covered with the onrushing waters, and several heavy crops of hay have been ruined. On the properties of Messrs. J. Feast, H. Sbuthey, and N. Reid the water reached up to the cowbails, Mr.' Feast being nnable to muster his stock. Owing to the electric power* being:- cut off the fanners had to resort to hand-milking. Residents state that the flood waters of the Maungatarere River, appear to extend for miles. Never before have they seen such a auantity of wat*. The Tauherenikau River overflowed and water two feet deep surrounds the cheese factory. From Donald's Bridge, Featherston, 'to Camp Corner,. about a mile, was a sheet of water. Five hundred yards of met.'; 1 : was washed away from the Featherston cheese factory. The Postal and Railway Departments have been doing their best to maintain regular services, and have come through the ordeal well.. At the invitation of the Borough Council, Dr. Boyd and Mr. Cowdrey, of the Health Department, to-day visited the flooded areas. At Landsdowne the bottom of the dam is a mass of weeds, and contains a quantity . of. dead eels and perch. Should the sun get to these it is feared disease might follow.