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Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19623, 5 May 1938, Page 4

An urgent appeal for funds to provide food and clothing for those people who are in financial difficulties as a result of the Hawke's Bay floods is being made by the mayors of Napier and Hastings. Yesterday afternoon a section of the sign skirting the verandah roof of Mr. W. Stewart's shop in Gladstone road carried away in the gale and crashed on to the roadway. There were no pedestrians in the vicinity at the time, and apart from the broken sign no damage was done. The issue of flood warnings and general information regarding the effects of the strom throughout the district by the Gisborne radio stations, 2ZJ and 2ZM, was much appreciated by listeners last evening. From station 2ZJ, the flood information was interpolated in the scheduled broadcast, the programme being interrupted from time to time for that purpose. Station 2ZM introduced a special emergency schedule to deaL with reports of flood interest, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., reports being gathered from Tolaga Bay, Tokomaru Bay, Ruatoria, Matawai, Tatapouri, Whangara, Muri>vai. Bartletts, Waingake. Te Karaka, .nd TVai:renga-o-kuri, as well as through the agency of the Poverty Bay Rivers Board. Particular interest in the New Zealand buckjumping team in the Sydney Royal Show was falcon by Mr. F. E. Humphreys, Ngatapa, who returned recently. Mi\ Humphreys said that the New Zealand team did very well indeed, and he saw ■1 particularly good ride by Frank Bruce, who secured fourth place in ♦he steer-riding, a creditable performance when pitted against 16 of the world's best. The Canadian and United States teams were really professional riders, spending most of their time attending shows and rodeos, and when not engaged in that they rode for the films. He said that the New Zealand team's experience should be well worth while, and with a little more practice they should be able to compete on equal terms with the riders from Canada and the United States. They should also be able to put on something ne/w in Gisborne.

Compared with other parts of the district, Te Karaka had only a moderate rainfall during the 24 hours ended at i* a.m. to-day. The recording for the period was 1.02 in., and for the duration of the storm 2.11 in. was gauged at Te Karaka.

The Gisborne High School closes today and the primary schools of the Gisborne district to-morrow for their first term holidays. The High School students resume on Tuesday, May 24, while the primary schools will be in recess until Monday, May 23.

The service of the East Coast Motor Company was curtailed to-day north of Tolaga Bay until road conditions improved in that area. A car was to leave Gisborne at 4 p.m. for Tolaga Bay and will depart at 8.30 a.m. tomorrow on its return to Gisborne. These are the only daily services scheduled until further notice.

For the second time within two weeks oarsmen in Gisborne were compelled last evening to go down to their clubhouse to remove some of their light racing craft to a position above the flood level. There was over 3ft, of water in the clubhouse of the Gisborne Rowing Club and considerably more in; the premises of the Poverty Bay Rowing Club. Wholehearted appreciation of the work of members of the Hawke's Bay and East Coast Aero Clubs during the emergency brought about by the Hawke's ■ Bay floods was expressed by Squadron-Leader S. Burrell, who is' in Hastings superintending the distribution by aeroplane of food and other necessities to families who are isolated as a result of the flood. Squadron-Leader Burrell said the members of the club had done every thing possible to get the job done and had spared neither themselves nor their resources in doing it. A large number of motor cars were on the move last evening taking motorists to various points of the district where land was threatened by flood damage, and probably the most popular stopping place was the bridge crossing the Waipaoa on the main south road. One party stopped on the bridge in a car to watch the rush of the water, but made a hasty getaway when a large log struck one of' the piers with a crash that sent, a shudder through the structure. Pumpkins and dead animals were being swept down with the tide from the higher reaches and as the floating objects passed under the spans thev were examined in torchlight by the' watchers. At least one of the sel tiers in the Patutahi district decided to spend the night in Gisborne, fearing that the Waipaoa River would overflow on one side and the Te Arai River on the other.