SECOND EDITION.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXV, Issue 12983, 26 January 1910, Page 7

SECOND EDITION.

THE AUSTRALIAN FLOODS. EMBANKMENTS EFFECTIVE. River Falling. - Association.—Telegraph.—Copvrigin SYDNEY, January 26. The embankments at Walgett arc withstanding the flood. Reports from up the Namoi state that the river is falling. NARRABRI’S shocking plight. People Almost Starving. Thousands of Stock Lost. NARBABRI, January 19. The most disastrous and highest flood ever recorded in Narrabri reached here 'on Sunday night, and caused thousands of pounds’ worth of damage, but, happily, no lives have been lost., Tamworth was out of communication on Saturday, so the residents were not . prepared for an abnormal flood, and it was anticipated: that nothing higher tiffin the March flood in 1908 would Ibo experienced, After events proved ',that , the flood was not to be compared with the ,one just' experienced. The "1864' flood did not reach within 2ft. of the present !p n o- Thousands of stock havq been lost, . noflses and iences swept away, and ruin r and' desolation now face hundreds who a week ago were, rejoicing at the excellent prospects of the new Year following on the bounteous rains. The waters of the flood have now reached into Tibbcrenah Street, leaving a portion of Maitland Street high and dry. ' The scene presented 1 is,'one of unutterable ruin. The whole oi/ the packing on the streets was washed/ away, leaving nothing but loose blu/eonetal. It is still unsafe to walk along footpaths, as there are numbers of holes,, measuring two and three feet deep. The water at its height was 4£ feet' in the Club House Hotel, completely covering, the whole of the town, also not leaying a dry spot anywhere. The foundations of the main buildings were mostly washed away, while many houses in and the contents gone floating, with the flood. Many families took ; refuge on the tops of their houses, but owing to food supplies running out had to vacate their positions. People in single-storied houses left their homes And made for places of safety. There is not hardly a fence intact in the town, /The butter factory is a very heavy loser/ over 300 crates of rabbits and'-l£'tiqs of butter being destroyed. It is still impossible . to enter this place, and the damage cannot be ascertained. All thedow-lying houses at the southern end of the town were very badly situated, the water being Bft. deep in some of them. The Court-house Hotel was in a- very perilous.; position, the foundations having been washed completely away. The ing o?- the stables was washed out in one solid piece. Tito police and court-house buildings suffer at all, and many nnfortunfamilies took refuge in them. The jtepple have now left these places for ,-TOeir own homes. All the business places the southern end of the town have suf- / tired very severely. Daniel Ward, dra- / per, has lost between .£4OO and .£SOO 4 worth of merchandise, while James Hinds, is also a very heavy loser. The post-office was surrounded by, water and the foundations have suffered. Telegraphic communication has been blocked, but at 5.40 p.m. communication had been restored. Many houses in the poorer parts of the town have been washed away, wTiilo Newtown is all underwater, and the residents are still on top of their houses. In some parts of this place the water rose 15ft., but is now going down very quickly. The police boat took provisions to these people this morning. Many of,them were almost starving. There is no bread in the town, and people are now living on biscuits, cheese, and fruit. There are 59 people in the Town Hall and School of Arts, and the various churches are providing shelter.

The bridge over the Nan-aim Creek has been washed away, and there arc no rnoans of' communication with Dangar village.