HUTT AND PETONE NEWS

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 485, 19 April 1909, Page 7

HUTT AND PETONE NEWS

*(FROM ODB SPECIAL KEPOMEiI.),

.■ . THE WHARF SUBSIDES, ; . FIRST. CONSIGNMENT OF TIMBER. Early fishermen who cast their lines from Petone Wharf on Saturday morning were surprised and a trifle alarmed'to find that-part of the wharf. decking neaf the outer end had left the horizontal. The obvious cause of tho subsidence was the weight of a stack of timber a consignment of 100,000 ft. which arrived trom Greymouth by the steamer Defender on Thursday afternoon. Most of tho shipment had. been removed from the wharf on Friday by tho consignees, the Hutt Valley Timber Co.; and, when the carters left in, thdtafternoon, there was'no evidence that the wharf suffered any strain. That portion of the structure which has moved is 80 feet in length. The dip commences at a point 40ft. from the iarther end, and three rows of piles (twelve in ,all) are affeptcd. They have sunk, at the pdint of greatest subsidence, fifteen or sixteen inches. At, first sight it would appear that the extreme end of'the wharf has settled ttown perceptibly, but this is not the case, the piles there having Temained firmly emAs this was the first timber oargo to : come over the new wharf, some concern is felt by the business people: of Petone and Hutt, who express doubts as to the stability of the wharf and declare that it would not" bear a severe est. Ihe present'subsidence is the more e'mbarrasing; inasmuch as it was proposed later on to lay down a line of rails on the wharf. At a.meeting of the Wellington' Harbour Board in September last, the following resolution, submitted by Mr. J, W. MTDwan (May6r of Petone) was passed :-That the aoting-ongiueer I be instructed to prepare estimates of the cost of laying down a light line of railway upon the . Petone, Wharf, with and without false decking, to conne6t with the Hutt. Park'railway. .■ , : : ; i\; ■•■ .:.:•.':'■''■ : . : "■' .'..,■". ■ - : - ' ' Mr._ MT3wan visited the wharf: on' Saturday' morning. Speaking'to The. Domikionirepresentative, he remarked that,.at the time tho piles were' bejng driven, he hnd commented on the ease with.which'they sank in the sand. He had pointed'out, to'the engineer that the weight of the monkey, was sufficient in itself to drive thoni'in, ibnt the board's, oificer had assured him that the wharf was 'being : built substantially, and that, the'files' were being driven to-considerable depth. \ . ■"■ The acting-engineer of the Harbour Board (Mr. E. D- Cachemaille) made an'inspection, of the wharf on Saturday afternoon. He was nnable o say positively.the cause of the'.subsidence, rat stated it-to bo probable that tho influences iad been similar to those which brought about the sinking bf Eona Bay Wharf in; September last.'. -At the :bay,'-,there was found , to be a strong undertow, apparently from the.Hutt Kiver.c wluctf: alternately' deepened and;' shallowed ,the shingle bed upon which the *harf was built. Originally, there'wis a depth,-at' the part affected, of,9ft., but, when the mont, was nbticedj y : it .turned out : that'the undercurrent had. scoured "\ the shingle, ■' and there was a depth of, 19ft. of water. : The remedy ■ was extra'• pi!a'< alongside, .10 ,ot 12ft. longer than the,original ones,/and then jadk up the decking on to the new piles. Tho same Vmethod: is likely to be- adopted in this 'Case... , ''■.':■'■'\.\ '■■. ;, ' i 'u.'- '■'.•.-.■■.:'■.•■ :.■•■'■',■ \'w :'■■'■'" Tho engineer states,that the average depth'of the piles of:Petone Wharf is 12ft. Some'Tvert' driven as nnich as 19ft. into the ground, .where the /driving ,wasveasy.. :■ Among - those-.'which moved on Friday nightmare some of the deepest piles. , The .beach' upbn which' the wharf'is built does .i\ot give an altogether firm'bottom, and, none of the Spiles ; struck .a, really solid stratum'. ..'.;■■ ' .: ■• •!;>.■ :..— ■," ~■..'.

Crowds o£ local residents visited the -wharf yesterday and expressed opinions. A small quantity of the timber remains on the Wharf, which shows no sign of returning to position as somo expected. As tho wharf stands now it is not in any way dangerous, nor docs t seem likely that further subsidenco will ike place.

...The,wharf, has, been out'of-tie.-hindVbf.-tt contractor, only few ■months, Jfessrs,. Donald Mlean and .Company receiving their final pavmetnt at the end of March: 'The contract price was: £9ti2.. From<the end'.of Victoria Street the wharf runs out ina. south-westerly'direct tipn. The approach iis 1100 ft. in length, 15ft. wide, and' to passing-place Ifor carts is;2sft. in width. The wharf proper, 33ft. in!widthV runs on; for 360 ft, and on this portion a small office has been built for the. tally clerks.and other officers.,' At..low water' the. depth, at 'the inner end, is 15ft., ,to. 20ft. at the'' outer .berths.;.. The piles,! beains,'icaps,' and all. other weight-carrying :timhprs are of- ironhark, the decking' walls, and braces being" laid down: in'l iarrah;' In all 181' piles; were used,, ranging. in length'from. 30ft. to Hit: "■ 'V ■f-.? ■• .

' ' JOTTINGS. The season ot-Petone Ladies'' Hockey Club opened on Saturday, with a practice on tho Recreation Gronnd. Detective Abbott arrested'a young man named Charles Leonard Buchanan in Petone on Saturday on a charge\of having assaulteda girl in Wellington on April 12: Another Association football match between tho young men of St. David's' Church and St Augustine's Church, Petone, took place 'on Sharps Grounds oa Saturday afternoon, and resulted in a ivin for the 'latter team by threo goals to one. Tho game was capably controlled by the Eev. J. D. Russell. An open-air concert was given by the Pctone Citizens' Band on Ihe Lower Hult Recreation wound yesterday afternoon. The playing of the visitors was greatly appreciated by a fanre gathering. b Members of Petone Association Football Club held a practice game at Maidment's on Saturday afternoon for the purpose of picking teams for the season. ■