SOUTHERLY GALE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 1 August 1939, Page 7

SOUTHERLY GALE

SCAFFOLDING BLOWN DOWN AT NEW PLYMOUTH HUNDREDS OF FEET OF TIMBER CRASH TO ROADWAY. WIND REACHES HIGH VELOCITY. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) NEW PLYMOUTH. July 31. A southerly gale that reached a velocity of 53 miles an hour today tore down a large scaffolding, more than 40ft high and 80ft long, fronting the concrete stores being erected for the New Plymouth Borough Council behind the municipal offices. Nobody was injured. At about the same time a large sign was torn from the top of a service station and hurled to a street below. The force of the wind could be gauged from the fact that heavy uprights supporting the scaffolding were snapped like matchwood, with the result that hundreds of feet of timber crashed to the roadway, narrowly missing power lines. The entire framework will have to be rebuilt! Fourteen feet by nine feet, a largo iron sign narrowly missed a pedestrian and car leaving the garage below. It broke six sets of telephone wires and tore away a wooden part of the building projecting above the roof. Electric power was cut off over a wide area of New Plymouth this morning. Service was restored after a few minutes, but the cause of lhe trouble was not located for a considerably longer time. BLEAK WEATHER CONDITIONS IN AUCKLAND DISTRICT. TRYING TIME FOR FARMERS. AUCKLAND. July 31. With the commencement of the lambing season a prolonged spell of fine weather is the hope of every sheepfarmers in the Auckland province. Driving rain, sleet and snow in areas where they had rarely been known in such intensity before, took fairly heavytoll of first lambs in some districts, and, in an endeavour to prevent heavy mortality a number of farmers took the unusual precaution of transferring early lambing ewes either to the roofed yards of sheds or to small tree-en-closed paddocks. Lambs born last week fought for survival in what several farmers described as the worst lambing conditions for many years.

On the higher levels of the Waikato and the King Country no great activity is expected till toward the middle of August, but on open country ewes are now lambing, fast. Several farmers near Hamilton stated that their flocks had stood up remarkably well to conditions, and, not only were the ewes in excellent heart, but losses among newly-born lambs had been surprisingly small in view of the fierce gales. MOUNTAINOUS SEAS SHIPS GREATLY DELAYED. AUCKLAND. July 31. Ships reaching Auckland from overseas are continuing to report very rough conditions in the Pacific. The Shaw, Savill and Albion steamer Maimoa, which arrived from Liverpool this morning, experienced exceptionally severe weather. Wind was at times of whole gale force, seas being mountannous. She was delayed several days in reaching port. Similar weather was encountered by the Port Line steamer Port Hunter, which anchored off Rangitoto tonight on her arrival from London. The North German Lloyd steamer Erlangen, five days behind in her schedule, will arrive tomorrow afternoon from New Orleans.