NEW PLYMOUTH HARBOUR

Taranaki Daily News, 11 March 1932, Page 2

NEW PLYMOUTH HARBOUR

MEETING OF THE BOARD. ACTIVITIES DURING FEBRUARY. The monthly meeting of the New Plymouth Harbour Board was held yesterday. Present: Messrs. C. E. Bellringer (chairman), E. Maxwell, J. R. Cruickshank, D. J. Malone, H. C. Taylor, W. C. Clement, W. T. Wells and J. H. H. Holm

The engineer (Mr. G. W. B. Lowson) reported as follows for the period between February 15 and March 5: — During the three weeks four overseas and two coastal vessels made use of the electrical crane for working cargo at the Newton King Wharf. A bad section of the Moturoa Wharf, approach was opened up for repairs and superstructure timbers were renewed where necessary. New walings and bracing were fitted elsewhere, and pile sheathing attended to. I<ower walings on the Newton King Wharf were removed for inspection of the pile coppering underlying them. The western sides and portions of the roofs of the Moturoa Wharf sheds were painted, the office roof cleaned, and windscreen ironwork on the Newton King Wharf chipped and painted. The breakwater crane is still under overhaul, the bed-plate framing being already repaired prior to replacing the balance weights, and a new cabin has been erected. Minor repairs in concrete were effected to the breakwater. Shipping requirements in the way of coal stages, loading boards, electric clusters and other services were at all times satisfactorily dealt with, drift sand removed from the waterfront, and clay carted to Paritutu Crescent for blinding purposes. The chairman explained that that would be the last meeting at which Mr. Lowson would be present before his notice expired on March 31. The chairman was authorised to make temporary arrangements to carry on in the meantime. It was decided to give the two men on the permanent staff of the Paritutu a month’s notice and to keep them on on a weekly basis. The harbourmaster (Captain O. F. McIntyre) reported as follows on the shipping at the port during February, the figures for the corresponding month last year being shown in parentheses:—Vessels entering port, 26 (29); aggregate tonnage, 68,710 tons (76,820 tons);. imports,. 6579 tons (9170 tons); exports, 5882 tons (6454 tons); total 12,461 tons (15,624 tons); Government coal, 1314 tons. Overseas ships numbered seven (the same as in February, 1931); five of them loaded produce and one discharged phosphate and another bitumen. They were: Port Bowen (8267 tons), draught 24ft 3in.; Cabarita (4364 tons), draught 18ft 3in; Antinous (4563 tons), draught 14ft; Karamea (8281 tons), draught 24ft 6in; Westmoreland (8986 tons), draught 22ft lOin; Coptic (8281 tons), draught 19ft 6in; Somerset (8607 tons), draught 21ft 3in. The weather was mainly good, with strong south-west and south east winds on 13 days. H.M.S. Laburnum visited the port from February 13 to 22 and berthed at the Newton King Wharf, where a private yacht, the Nahlin, was berthed from February 11 to 13.