THE TAHITI DISASTER.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXVIII, Issue 7999, 20 March 1906, Page 3

THE TAHITI DISASTER.

.FRENCH OFFICIAL'S : EXPEDIENCES. ! AN AWFUL NiIGiBT. "Dr Voille, of the Public Health :Department, of Tahiti, in course • of-conversation with a representa'ttve of ithe New Zealand Herald, on Thursday ilast, gave a moat . grapbio .description of tbh recent catastrophe at Tahiti. '"All waa well," seirl Dr. Voille, "on the morning of February 7th. The people went about their affairs as usual, not imagining that any- • ■ thing serious waa likely .to happen a 1 few hours (later. In the afternoon, /ihowerer, the sea appeared to be agitated, but not to any great extent. There was what you might • call a 'bit of a swell,' ibut nothing more. Tbe barometer however indicated the approach ot' a cyclone. It seemed to be in the direction of ;the Pauoiotu Archipelago. These islands have already suffered • severely from such visitations. only as recently aa X 903, when the damage was very severe." "When did you fiist experience the c.vclone in Papeete.' "'lt was ahout eight o'clock in the evening when the sea invaded the wharves ot Papeete—slowly at-first, but surely! It was nearly ten o'clock at night whan tbe-sea rose so high the inhabitants of the houses along the sea front left thoir dwellings, retiring to higher Jaud, and carryinu Bome of their effects i with them. The sea had then crept 'i*.np to tbe Douses. About one O'clock in the morning of the Bth a great and terrible wave broke on ;tbe shore, crashing against the bouses, which are of wood for tbe most Dart. Five minutes later a second wave followed—bigger thau the first—and then a third, which completed the ruin of the bouses broken by the first shock. Many of ■them collapsed in an instant, , like nouses of cards, and others that still preserved ■BOJH© semblance t© their former shapes were swept before the flood into the Rua de Rivoli, sofne •20 metres from where tbe.v had formerly stood. It was thus tbßt the residence and pcste of tbe harbourmaster were destroyed, being swept •clean off the piles upon wtiicb they iiad beei erected. A TERRIFYING SPECTACLE, "At two o'clock iu the morning, come 390 metres of the shore, ordinarily dry land, was under water. - It was a most terrifyiug spectacle. ' The officers of tbe Public Health Department, together with a lieutenant of gendarmerie, at the head of a squad of natives, were engaged in rescue work all night, until sunrise." "You had a great many caljs on your services aa a doctor of medicine, uo doubt?" Dr Voille was asked. "Certaiuly. It was very hard work indoed. There were so man y injured to attend to. Well, to continue. The night was abnormally dark, and an extremely cold rain fell without ceasing, adding greatly to the miseries of the poor people. It was most difficult to get along the streets for they were heavily encumbered with the debris of fallen houses, and added to this were floating articles of furniture, such as boxes, pieces of timber, and similar articles. The relief party worked splendidy, I must say that. They went over tbe ruins of the houses, and dragged out many of tbe uatives who were alive, but were overpowered with fear, struck dumb allnost by the disaster. Very many were badly injured." THE UTA TRAGEDY. "Did you "ee anything of the Quarantine Island incident." "Yes. Ah, that was very sad. There was on the island, which is called Motu Uta, and is just off the shore of Papeete, tbe caretaker, whose name was Bolloch; he was a former steward on the Taviuni. When tbe sea broke over Motu Uta, Bolloch made signals of distress, but those on shore could render him no assistance. He attracted our atten tion by weving a lamp vigorously. We knew what he meant, but could not aid him. He climbed up into a cocoanut.tree, to give us his signals, and with him was his wife," "Were any efforts made to reach him at ail?" "Yes, M. Andre, a pilot, made three attempts to get out to the island, but theywore fruitless. Bolloch held on until eight o'clook in the murning, but he dropped into tbe sea exhausted, I suppose, and we found his body two days after. His companion secured some floating wreckage, and was ultimately rescued by the crew of the Orohena. IN A STONE HQUSU. "Another drama was enacted at Faro Uta, a point of the island where the Public Works buildings are established. All tbe workshops ' were thrown to the ground by the first great wave, excepting a stone building. In this two Europeans had taken refuge; but for a time they were quite cut off from all human aid, while tbe sea raged all around tbem in its fury, but they were ultimate/ saved." Referring to the day after the storm, Dr Voille said, "It would be impossible to adequately describe in words the scene presented at Papeete, when daylight broke on the morning of February Btb. The oldest inhabitants of the group agree that such devastation bad never been seen there in their time. About nine a.m. on the Bth tbe W cyclono Dassed on its way. Happily it-came from the mountain, otherwise the whole town would have been dostroyed." LOSS OF LIFE AND PROPERTY. "Has any estimate been formed of the loss of life and property?" "I think there must have been nearly 200 lives lost altogether. The Paumotus have suffered most, more than Tahiti itself; whole villages have disappeared. At Auaa, which was the oentre of the cyclone, there were at first reports 90 killed, and up to Maroh 2nd the total deaths reported from there were about 150. I*b doubt there are many others. The loss in property must amount to many millions of francs, and the disaster must have a depressing effect upon the prospects of the island.; bat the little oolony, in spite of its trials,. holds up its bead •ait"

THE GOVERNOR OF TAHITI. 'Dr Voille ipaid a tribute to the ivi. JJililien, and to M. Charvier, Prcoureur de Republique, ■who organised rdlief with all speed. The militaiy ifaoapital and ail the barraoks were thrown open for the reception of the sufferers, and for housing of tfbe homeless, and the modioli men worked without rest to tbe ufcmost Of their capacity in attending to the iinjured. Vessels •laden with stores and medioal comforts were sent at once to the Pauxnotus, conveyed by tbe gunooat Zalee. It was learned from Dr Voille that tbe prompt offer of the New Zealand Government to afford assistance would be greatly appreciated by the people of Tahiti and Dy the French Government.