Ships Hove-to To Ride Out Storm

Chronicle (Levin), 17 June 1949, Page 6

Ships Hove-to To Ride Out Storm

- ■ — . WELLINGTON, June 16. Three ships have beeh/hove-to .for over 24 hours this week, riding out a storm which has eovered both, the Tasman and Pacifie Oceans near 'New Zealand. y wo of the three have " been delayed for at least one day in their" arrival. The ships are the Port St. John from Brisbane, the Tropic from Suva and tne Waitaki from Melbourne. The Port. St. John, bound for Wellington,, was 100, miles west of Greymouth a't-'inoon today. She is now due at Wellington tomorrow. Shs has been pfactieally stopped by heavy seas' for the past three days. The i'reighter Waitaki was expectea from, .Melbourne and .is now expected, ;.tomor.rovy, at Dunedin today. She has been hoveto south" oi New Zealand on her way The cargo vessel Tropic bound originally for Dunedin with British general cargo and produce from Suva, has;been diverted to Lyttelton. The diversion was not due to weather, said shippmg officials, although tlie vessel would have been late had she gone to Dunedin. 'Ihe fact that more labour Was available in Lyttelton had'caused the diversion. The Tropic, steaming off the east coast of New Zealand, would probably have encountered the worst weather of any of the three ships, said the Weather Offi.ce tonight. The hentre of the depression .causing. the . storm was loeated southeast of New Zealand. Southeast winds had been blowing hard for sonie days causing high seas even in the Tasman hundreds of miles' from the storm centre. Conditions . were gradually easing as the depression moved away.