HEAVY CALES AND FLOODS.

Colonist, Volume LII, Issue 12756, 31 March 1910, Page 3

HEAVY CALES AND FLOODS.

[United Press Association.] Wellington, March 30. The storm warnings telegraphed . to tli© far north by the meteorological office- on -Saturday have been amply justified. The north was advised to look out for squalls on Monday., and by nightfall the advance skirmishers of a cyclonic disturbance had smitten Cane Maria. Yesterday, tho tempest developed, and the -"howling winds rushed down tho Island On* Ihursday night Fiji was struck by a hurricane: then the cyclone whirled westward to Norfolk Island, and after a busy time there it .veered to tne •south-east, and beaded for Three Kings. This morning the centre or the disturbance was to the westward of Cape Maria, and the line of maich was towards the East Cape If the storm continues in its present track it will blow down to -the Chathams, but other forces may intervene. Alreat j an enemy, an anticyclone (gonciallj friendly to man) is working off Jilie west coast of the. South Island and the high pressure movement may tone down, and divert the low-pressure. At nine o'clock this morning- the barometer was down to 29 mches at Russell, tho lowest reading for about three years. The energy of the vigorous gale this morning was chiefly felt northward of East Cape, Taupo, and Wanganui, and rain was general in the Island, and there Avas heavy thunder and lightning. The wind will change by S.E. to S., and finally to S W Wellington's share of the mcv, theiUiaa not been so heavy as the Northern districts' portion, but theie is \£t time for a larger demonstration bore. In a few hours the wind .here mayhavemore sting. ■The-bouth is--land too, was mostly under couds to-day, but down at'lnvercargill --the air Avas calm. The telegraph office advised to-day that communication with Auckland was totally, interrupted; and work for" north of Hamilton willbe heavy. The -delay ofi nformation received by;tbe Wellington Post Office shows that. the ; violence of. the storm has been, well up .to the forecast Communication with. Wairangi, on the French' Pass line/ was also interinpted .this morning. A swish of ■ tlißlgale- brought- down" a wire-just when^Paeroa was announcing its plight. The- .message ran:_ lne heaviest, flood ever known m Paeroa occurred this morning. The streets are submerged three or four feet, Auckland, March 30. The Ohinemuri river flooded its banks at 7.30 this morning, and the streets of the township were flooded to a depth of three feet in places tho water running down the main street at a great rate, the lower parts or the town being rapidly submerged. Most of the shops in the main street are flooded, and houses in Rye Lane, Puke and Junction roads, are more or less flooded. So far no more serious damage is reported, but the flood is bound to do, a good deal. Napier, March 30. A storm of exceptional severity is racing over the district. The rainfall during the past three days totals nearly five inches. The rivers are m heavy flood, but there is no serious danger at present. ■' Feilding, March 30. A violent south-easterly gale struck tho town early this morning, accompanied by rain. The. gale continues to-day. It is the worst experienced here for a considerable time. So rat no damage is reported. Ingle wood, .March 30. Tho usual Easter gale.is blowing. Blenheim, March 30. A gale of some force was experienced in this district to-day and tins evening, but beyond smashing oi trees, little damage is reported. Cistiorne, March 30. Tho storm forecasted by the Government Meteorologist has only just arrived. A strong easterly gale is, raging, and heavy rain has fallen, 3 b'J- inches being recorded at nine j o'clock this morning for the previous 24 hours, making a total for 48 hours of 6.9 inches. Later. Heavy rain has boon. falling continuously since Monday afternoon, and at^present there is no prospect of its cessation. It is blowing an easterly vale. " : . ... AH the livers are rising _ rapidly. There is every prospect of a disastrous, flood similar to that of; four years ago. Already dead stock. are floating down the river. Hundreds of acres of land are ''under water. . _ The train was blocked at .Ormond, eleven miles out, by a big washout on the ' line. The settlers; are having a most anxious time, and they are removing their stock to the higher levels'; The coaching services are entirely suspended. - „..„„■ Wanganui, March 30. Rain commenced on Tuesday, and fell uninterruptedly till this morn- 1 ing. A heavy gale has-been experienced all day, and the thermometer is low. New Plymouth, March 30. A howling south-caster is doing considerable damage in' the town and suburbs. Many old buildings and fences have been destroyed, tele- . graph wires torn from posts, windows' smashed, and chimneys blown over. One gust of wind lifted a woman some feet in the. air, dropped her, and rolled her across the street. Fishing craft at Moturoa were sunk at their moorings, but the Rarawa ( berthed safely on arrival from Ouehunga. The slates oil the roof of tho new Post Office- are being torn off,, and the oil derricks at Moturoa are believed to have suffered severely. Tho gale is the severest experienced for many years. Later. A storm burst over Taranaki early this morning with cyclonic fury, detraction in all directions marking its visitation. 'Very little rain has fallen, but the hurricane-like blasts have reached a velocity never hitherto experienced on this coast; At the time of wiring (8 p,.m.) the' gale shows no sign of -abatement. Very considerable damage has been done fences, stables chimneys, verandahs, trees, etc., being down in all directions. Many narnnv escapes occurred; from; flying iron and timber, but no casualties are' reported. The large two-storied show rooms in Devon street,, just vacated/collapsed in a mass 'of .ruins; ." All- kinds .of reports are current of the overturning of buildings, coaches, and traps in the outlying districts, which it is impos"sible to verify, but everything points to the damage being, considerable. This morning the' Taranaki Petroleum, Company's No. i derrick collapsed. During the afternoon reports ; reached town that No. 3 was also a victim to the cyclone's .fury, while the A'ew Zealand. .Standard. -Oil Company's Vbgeltowri derrick had also gone. The falling of trees in the .town disorganised sev.eral sections or\ the telephone | wires, while the, electric lighting is also out of gear in some localities. There ;is scarcely a property not aff ected to^soine extent, and, ; the aggregate, damage^ must bo fairly considerable. The. shipping is not venturing i out of port to-nigTit. Yesterday's gale has been felt much more on the other side of the ranges than here. Mr F. N. Jones drove from Carivastown yesterday, and he reports trees and branches down in all directions right along to the top of Wangamoa saddle. I)n this side of tho saddle there was comparative calm. So bad was the gale that several times he was tempted to seek shelter and wait an abatement.