ORDEAL CONTINUES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20307, 15 July 1929, Page 12

ORDEAL CONTINUES.

EARTHQUAKES AND STORMS

DAMS TO BE BLASTED*

KARAMEA ROAD WIPED OUT.

CORBYVALE NOW EVACUATED. [ny TELEGRAPH.—I'RESS ASSOCIATION.] WKSTPOUT, Sunday. The weather at the week-end has been verv rough, a scries of thunderstorms being interspersed by several earthquakes. The, worst ones occurred during the night. The position as far as Seddonvillb is concerned is unaltered. An examination of the big dam in the Mokihinui Iliver shows that it was 75ft, high, and that when the flood occurred about 25ft. of tho top of the dam came away, leaving a bank of 50ft. still standing. When tho flood broke through part of the big dam it, carried away a number of minor darns down the river, except one about a inilo above the township. A gang of men is leaving at 7 a.m. to cut a track up to the big dam. Explosives will be taken up to blast away the dams when the river is low.

.Mr. C. F. Schadick, engineer to the Puller County Council, who has returned from Kararnea, reports that the inland road is wiped out, and will never be used again. lie estimates the cost to the county of restoration work in and about Karainca at £20,G00.

Except for one family Corbyvalc has been completely evacuated.

SHOCKS AT MURCJIISON.

HEAVY RAIN EXPERIENCED. RIVERS REPORTED RISING. [I) Y TELEGRAPH. —OWN ( OHlf KSI'ONIJLNT. ] NELSON. Saturday. Only one noticeable earth tremor has been felt in Nelson since yesterday. The chief postmaster at Nelson, Mr. G. W. Hazleton, lias received the following telegrams from the postmasters at Murchison and Takaka:— Murehison, 10 a.m.—llivcrs rising. Heavy rain during the night. Several minor shakes during the night. One heavier one occurred at 5.20 a.m. Takaka, J 1.30 a.m.—Two light shakes were experienced at 2.15 a.m. and a.m. to-day. LESSONS FROM DISASTER. VIEWS OF A SCIENTIST. EXPERIMENTS IN TIMING. [EY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT.j WELLINGTON, Sunday. One of the impressions gained by Dr. C. E. Adams, Government seismologist, from his visit to the earthquake affected area, is tliaL Westport and Nelson were about equaliv hard hit by the earthquake. In some yi the structures damaged by the earthquake, said Dr. Adams, it seemed to him as if the possibility of a big shako had been ignored by those responsible for the buildings. Architects, he suggested, would be well advised to bo more in touch with geologists, more co-operation all round being desirable. The Matakitaki Bridge, for instance, was built practically on the fault running alongside the river, which seemed to be asking for trouble. There may, however, have been reasons from ail engineering point of view for this, and it was easy enough to be wise after the event. The visit was a great experience and gave first-hand knowledge of tho magnitude of tho forces at work. After seeing what ho had. reports of previous big earthquakes like the Santa Barbara and San Francisco ones would be read in a new light. One of the most amazing features was the twisting without breaking of tho railway lines. lie was tinable to substantiate the story of the sea bottom being raised off Karamea, as he was not able to visit that district.

Experiments were now being made in the timing of shocks and observations. Westport, Greymouth, Hokitika and other places were co-ordinated for this purpose. Some valuable information it was hoped would be deduced from these experiments, which were being entered into with zest by officers of the Post and Telegraph Department. As an example, a- shock Was felt at Westport at 3 a.m. on June 23. Immediate telephone communication with Greymouth was made, and the cleric at the latter place was able to run 12 paces before he felt the shock. Christchurch was rung up but the shock had already been felt there, yet the Christchurch oflice had time to ring up Auckland before the tremor had got so far north. The most fruitful source of investigation at present, .he thought, would be that done by the geologists, especially when the Karamea district was investigated.