DISASTROUS GALE.

Timaru Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 4640, 10 September 1889, Page 2

DISASTROUS GALE.

GKEAT DKSTRUCTION OF l'KOi'KKli". About 7 o'clock last evening a very i*lrang pulp from tho iiorlli-itrst set m, nivl inrrcaard m violence up till 'J o'clock, at which hour the wind was blowing with hurricane) force. Dust w<u driven through nil the streets m dense cloud?, nnd being occasionally mixed with fine gravel, made locomotion almost impossible. At on early stage of the Rale, paling ond weak fences of otifl description and another were carried away bodily, and ftt tiic height of the galo apparently 'strong picket fences wer« scattered ia nil "directions. In Jleiton and other streets nt the back of tho town several buildings were more or less damaged, but on making enquiries up to n Lite, hour l.ijt nij»ht, wo did not hoar of nnv accident to persons either m or about buildings. At the Columbia Kink, on I.eCmi's Terrace, the fearful wind gal full play, and i! whs not long bc-foro »ig»s were only too ominous that if some precautions vrcrr net taken the building would be rared with the ground. Men were at once put on to " (.lion- up " the ivisttrn sido wall*. Him was not done, however, until the wo.'tern wall had tiecn bulged m, but, fortunntely, the wall did not cullap.o altogether. It wa« reported that the floor had also been damaged, but «o for us can be pecn this is not the cue. In nddition to this loso, l£r Heciinghnm tuffcred a minor on.', his workfhou at tho back of Jiia warcliomo m t)i« Main Road being unroofed m places. Coming from LeCren's Terrare into Stratlmllon street a very old ieanto next Sir Keith's shop it wrecked, and from tlio railway croMiug to Me.-jrs Miles Archer nnd Co'a store, tha street named i* paved with iliecU of new and old calTanised iron, timbsr and ether debris. A man who was abroad m tho street had n narrow ej'-ape, of being struck with a sheet uf iron, jiul scciui: it, whirling and detct'iiding m tho nir m time to get out of tlio way. At the Ship, the^CUrcndon, nnil tlu> Club LlutcU, thclowcrlargc windows were forced m, and rorcral inrgo panes cf glass destroyed. Al the iwo-eturicd bnck shop, opposite, the post office, tho window* wcr>< i-ompletely •mnehed, nnd tlio lean-to workfliop, strangely enough situated on the custom jide.T.asalruoetdcmoliiilied. Jt would ,appi*ir that odo of the side lights fulling m,

the gilehad thereby got a purchase, and litt inff the roof bodily," the fall Iril *mti.hcd th< raft rrs and twittel tin" roof iron into ruins Sevoral ciuixi of bricks have gone snd tbi place c*"iT:iily I'uka very desolate. At tin T'arof Hcilev's a bakehouse was several; •Inmsged. ant? 3fr Itowkcr's stable-, belnm tho Anemhly Room?, wns so much k:io"kec about, that hnd tho hor»e vot been taken on it would most probably have been killed Along the lire of " the main strec tho dar.gcr dons so far as coulc he te-ii la«t night. wns not veri gresi!. The cr.ish cf falling glass wa: continuous for about an hour, from the Come up (o Ujllar.tync's, but on nil in«pe'-tior about 10 p.m . pine« of rlim lnd only fallei out hero und there. In Hearh road th, greatest <i:imn«o wa» done to Messrs Ullchrtfi and To:nlinsi>:i'» slablcs. The g ilo dr.>v. rieht against t!-.i- fretit doors, and thesn Riviiif wnv ca'tlv, the building, a rather iig'-d one ol bri'ek. wii-i very -oon li-miaccd. 'J he stabh invuii.-.l a «f) i- oi> the cliff overboiling llu loutiicrn r.iilnir line, but luckily none ol the wreckage four.d its way on to the ruilwai metal.*, lleirinj m mind" the (\ct that tin ojtu;eal mill «ii< bully damaged during the List hurnVine that visited us, many ijiicsti jnwere asked last night about it. but this time it sto.nl tilt' te*t nil richt. 1 h.- Timiru Milling Company* large brick mill adjoining, honetcr, v.as damii:ed. Of 1»U- the mill has worko! Nt uighl, or.d while the wind was r.ig : ng iciifully the men heard ominous «)i;nds en t!ie topmost iloor It. was *oo:i , C en whit was the matter, for mi the wind race jjettiiu: a good hold, the- roof immediately over ttie "ilk dressers, facinir almost due ml. was stripped off lertvina only the bare principals. Rcof iron, and fhe close timbered lining beneath, wus carried a.viy, "itn. 1 oring b!o«n on to the bea-.-h whilst oth t pieces fell on to Grey ro.id and on the vacant section next to th • oalmeal mill The machinery was soon stopped, and Mr Rutland, the manager of the mill fen! for, tho workmen m tiie meantime dotne a!! they could to st ip further damage. It was f'jnie lime, however, ere tarpaulin* could bigot t.> temporarily* cover t.ht> ro'if. anj as r»ia '.ad tdlo-Kc-d "on tho wind lullinp. it i« feircd th it the »:Ik dressers or. an <\- nuiinnlion thir m.ir::in2 will »how signs ol" damage. At Ihe drill shed near by. it was found necffsirv lo shore up. from the interior, the walls f.u-ins rorth-wes;, end Iho end wall lacing aho-.it west, and t!ii« wa! done before any undue striin'ng had taken ph«. Coming now to tho port, the barrjucntine Qui.litic Star at the Moody jetty rode to l:cr moorings all right, Captain Cbrksan, tlu' h.irbourrra-tcr. beirj on board until nil danger was pa«t. Ilr I. Hrarllev had one r>f liis boat; tilled with water at her mooring.*, «nd Mr Scorrinje's home mad- punts r.\rnc to grief. One of the crane jibj was blown across the wharf, but on the whole the damage done about the wharf wns trilling. The gnle, «--.id by the •' oldest inhahit-int " to bavo been the nimtfe-ere ever felt inTimani, ha;) b:,)-.m ils.'lf out about 9.30, at which hour rain was fjlling heavily and continued to do. co for some time.