NURSES’ HOME DISASTER

Taranaki Daily News, 6 February 1931, Page 7

NURSES’ HOME DISASTER

J-TELL LIKE PACK OF CARDS”

MANY GIRLS HOPELESSLY CAUGHT.

TERRIBLE WORK OF READERS.

By Telegraph.—Press Association, .Palmerston North, February 5.

The Mayor, Mr. Graham, visited the ’quake area yesterday offering to help the Napier committee. in charge of Police Coipmissioner Wohlmann.. TJie committee gladly accepted the offer to billet refugees,' and arrangements were thereupon made to send 400 to Palmerston. These have been arriving all day by bus and train. So wonderful has been, the response of the citizens that 3000 could be accommodated here if necessary. . . Mr. Graham states that the Napier committee has control of qll the situation, such as sanitation, water, order and discipline. He a lso' speaks highly of the organisation of the* casualty stations. W. Girling, of Napier, who arrived in Palmerston North this afternoon, fitited

that he spent the night in the . open. in th© Botanical Garden? after working all day bn the nurses’ home and the hospital assisting ' t<? extricate nurses and others who had been trapped.

The qiirses’ hojne, a ferro-concreto building, collapsed like a pack of cards with, as far as is known on the night, 16 nurses besides the office staff, consisting of two young men and a young woman. The three latter’ are in a hopeless position, being buried under the whole’ three stories.

The nurses, howevef, were placed in a slightly better position, and. it is thought that some, at least, could be saved. Altogether six have been extricated alive from the debris, more or less severely hurt. One of the nur?es wa? pin-, ned under a big concrete slap which had been a portion of the wall, and it was found necessary to use crowbar?, sledge hammers and levers. Man-o-warsmen assisted in this laborious job, which'took a dozen men three hours before the nurse was finally freed. GIRLS TRAPPED IN DEBRIS. Another girl was trapped under .a stairway behind the ' first-mentioned nurto and could not get free until her mate got out. The girls stoically endured the long suspense crouched in discomfort, and pain. When the sledge hammers got to work the girlt suffered severely, but relief was given by using levers.

Three members of th© staff had not been got out at 8.30 this morning. One of these was Mr.. Shirley, a well-khown musician, and another a lady assistant, Misss Thorne-George, who was among those reported in the list of dead. . Mr. Girlin-g, a member of the staff of Robjohns, Hindmarsh and Cp., was unloading a lorry on the wharf at Port Ahuriri when the upheaval occurred. The sensation was that of a terrific upthrust from underneath which lifted the boats up to the level of the wharf .and threw the Harbour Board’s shed ovex on to the lorry. Mr. Girling sprinted along the wharf on to the road and just missed being buried, but his bicycle still lies underneath yards of fallen bricks and cement.

The wharves all the way along are in a terrible ?tate, being cracked and out of plumb and sunken in places. The boats all cleared out into the bay with the exception of the Veronica, which stuck to her post and did nople service. Fire started ip tha upstairs portion of Robjohns, Hindmarsh and Co.'s txyostorey building at the port. The front and side had fallen out, and the wreck was soon a blazing furnace which spread rapidly and consumed all in its path. All wholesale premises were destroyed besides several wool stores, the post office and oil depots. This morning the wind was blowing in the. opposite direction, fanning .the flame? into renewed activity and placing the residential portion in grave danger. At Napier a high wind developed from th© west and the Cosmopolitan Club, one of th© few remaining buildings in th© stricken area, caught fire and was burning fiercely. Th© Trinity Methodist Chupch, one of, th© oldest buildings in Napier, is still standing and does’ not. appear to have suffered much damage. Mr. Girling stated that between. 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. there were ho fewer than 55 shocks and tremors. These were recorded in a novel manner by a boy who camped in the park. Every time a shake occurred he put a knot in a pifece of string, and by 5 o’clock he ran. out of string. Other shakes followed diiriqg the morning, including three very severe ones.

DONATIONS FOR RELIEF.

OFFERS OF ACCOMMODATION.

GOVERNOR TO VISIT SCENE.

The Wanganui Ministers’ Association met this morning and. decided to provide accommodation for 1000 refugees, and organised, drives. to be made throughout Wanganui for clothing. The “K” jam factory, at Nelson are shipping to-night 6000 tins of jam and 3000 tins of soup as a contribution to thv relief of distress.

In view of the reported shortage of fuel for the use of residents of the destroyed district, two Auckland coal companies have made valuable donations of coal. The Glen Afton Collieries dispatched 50 tons of coal by rtil for free distribution in and around. Napier and Hastings. Renown Collieries dispatched 25 tons of coal, and instructed their agents in the district to arrange for free distribution of the fuel. Mr. Forbes has cabled the Commonwealth Government, on behalf of th© people of New Zealand, expressing appreciation of the generous offer of the services of an Australian warship, but assuring the Australian Government that adequate arrangements have been m-i© for the necessary relief measures Th© following additional telegrams have been received by th© GovernorGeneral

From the Governor of Victoria: "On behqlf of the (government and the people bf Victoria I ask your Excellency to accept our deepest'sympathy in the disaster . which has overtaken your people.” From th® Governor-General of the Union of South Africa: “I desire to express my very deep regret at the news of the disastrous earthquake, and niy sincere sympathy with. all sufferers.” From the’Dukb of York: “The Duchess of York and I have heard with great distress of the terrible earthquake. Fleas© convey our deepest sympathy to all those who suffered In the disaster.”

Their Excellencies, Lord and Lady Bledisloe, reach Wellington to-morrow morning and leave bn Saturday for the stricken area. Further messages received by the Governor are from the president and council, of the Royal Agricultural Sbciety of England and Lord Ran*.furls ' ' '