FLOOD DIFFICULTIES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 07, Issue 93, 25 July 1944, Page 5

FLOOD DIFFICULTIES

GALLANT AIRMAN EFFECTS RESCUE SHADES OF ST. C£ Although during the recent rain no serious flooding occurred, there were, nevertheless, patches of road which were covered with up to six or eight inches of water; not sufficient to the majority of motorists,, but enough to unnerve any one in a small car unused to such conditions. The following is an authentic stoi'y (or as near authentic as an airman's story can be) told us by an N.C.O. in the R.N.Z.A.F. It appears that he was jaunting along the road at a solemn six miles an hour when he came to a spot where the road was fairly well inundated. Accordingly he slipped into low gear and pushed his vehicle unfalteringly into the tide. Things .were progressing smoothly when suddenly he came upon a nerve shattering spectacle. A small car was stranded in the middle of what was apparently the road with water seeping in and out of it. and generally saturating it thoroughly. The driving seat had been abandoned, and the owner, a lady driver, was sitting on the roof with her feet on the bonnet, looking very bedraggled and distressed. Our hero was visibly moved. Hereditary chivalrous instincts jjredominant in St. George and other notable knights surged to the fore, causing him to come to an abrupt end. Pausing only to pass a comb through his tousled locks, he ejected his head and half his body through the window and inquired as to whether he might render some assistance. Blushingly the. lady replied in. the affirmative and was rapidly handed down into the cab of the truck in the regulation fashion.

Without further ado t our hero placed upon himself a stern countenance, flung his hat to the floor and plunged into the swirling torrent. Dog-paddling vigorously, he located an odd piece of wire which was in disuse at the moment and firmly lashed the two vehicles together. With a throaty gurgle he clambered back behind the; steering column and gradually the truck forged ahead t effortlessly extricating the smaller auto from its predicament.

The rest, as he stated with air-man-like modesty, was but a matter of form. With the. versatility and adaptability common to his service, he quickly stripped the; engine to its foundations, dried it out and in no time it was once more functioning normally. Then with a debonair smile and a flippant cheerio, . the airman passed on his way—a saintly soul in a uniform of blue. As a result of this occurrence,. a pais, of swimming togs would appear to be an essential part of an airman's equipment. We feel sure that, in. this case at least, such an item will soon no longer be lacking.