GALE AND RAIN.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1710, 29 March 1913, Page 6

GALE AND RAIN.

ROUGH TIME IN HARBOUR,

FLOODS IN THE SOUTH. SERIOUS LOSS OF STOCK,' WASHOUTS BLOCK TRAINS. . , A heavy westerly galo laged over .Wellington nil day . yesterday, and .caused much.inconvenience-to harbour shipping. ; At midnight the _Wind had' 'shown ' no signs of abating, in fact, it was blowing stronger than ever. , Between 3 p.m. and 4 pta. "the glass" showed signs of falling, and it was antici- \, pated 'by seafaring folk that the . .wind would "chop" round to the "southard" by midnight, and ftt'the time of writing indications pointed, to . that being the case.; : Although the sea at; the Heads:was, com-, paratively speaking,; calm, the. watersof the harbour were lashed to foam. Ferry ( boats arriving at 'Wellington wharves from ; the various bays had exciting . experiences. Big seas swept : over,the bridgedeck of tho.Duchess and Cobar, and both ves;sel^, shipped. a large quantity,of water. Tossed Like'a Cork.- ■

. The small steam'trawler Energy received a rough handling, when she wis coming up ...the' harbour'..during-the' morning. In her endeavours to : round Point Halswell in the teeth of the gale, the little ves- ■ sel was. tossed about, like a. cork and .was compelled to turn several-itimes.' .rill'.'' • The coastal st6aittei3''' , 'sl£fttista' -''ito'd Opawa left port for Bl<rii)tb'ii\'',',tietV's e P 5 and 6 o'clock last, evening,; IfaJC compelled to return to port:;se,vsraJ hours ,later. In fact, it took the Blenheim over two hours to beat- lip, the.harbour to n berth at the' wharves, and :the Opawa oc- i ' cupied a- much longer time.', , ( , ~ , Late last evening the rain" descended in : sheets.and the weather became very thick. The steamer .Regulus,'which was to have' left "Wellington for Nelson,; remained in : port., and the Awaroa ; did likewise; .. 1 Plate-Glass Window Smashed. ,'\ The violence, of- the gale was'severely felt in tho streets. ' .A. furiouVgiist smash- , cd plate-glass show, of Gold : ' 1 .steinV mercery .shop on the corner of Lambton Quay and 'Woodward''-Street on .the latter ahdl'tliQ.fragmbnts , were - scattered all'. over' the '. pavement! ■ Tho crash of .-glass 1 frightened'a ; c6uplo of express horses ; in such a manner that, the . wheels, of the two vehicles became; .curiously interlocked;, 1 and a'quarter. of, an hour' elapsed before they..could be separated. .; : ..."- ,-f■ / -r .It is:related that an!.aged-''Government•' . Messenger'.was blown off. ;his feet-by-the force of thS gale whilst walking up Molesworth Street.

Electrical Display. . Quite an' electrical .display took place. '. in Customhouse Quay'at ( a,quarter.to one : o'clock^this morning. - An' overhead elec--!tric wire-was broken by. the -foVce.of .the wind, and one : end, fell to; the ground.. Immediately there was' a--brilliant blue light and a tihower of sparks/ -The wind, caught,the broken wire. and earned it ; backwards and forwards,''with .the,result that V every time the broken end 'caino in'/ ' contact with, the ground a brilliant blue . light was sent forth: ' The display continued'until a member of tho electric light staff attended to the break.'" FLOOD AT THE HERMITAGE. CHUNKS' OF, ICE AND BOULDERS. ' ; - ' (By Telegraph.-ipress Association.) ■ ■■' Timaru, March 28. .Mount Cook. Hermitago reports that a • bigger'flood than th»t :of January ,is bef ing'experienced." 'Ten; inches, of rain fell in. 22 hours. The gauge was then submerged. The hostel was invaded by- the water, and-the 'tourists aire. preparing to ■; take to tents on higher ground. '■■■■■ i.' ,Ono of tho car bridges is gone,-and- the' ; road .is impassable. • .• ' • . .Generally the flood coincs from /the Mueller,".Glacier, through a gap. in. tlie old ; sido moraine, and thi9;time,c£unks:of ice are coming away, with the boulders.', ' . . Steady rain has fallen at'Timaru since •8 p.m. . . ' . '; ' ' , . . Fairlie and the. Mackenzie Country report heavy and steady rain. - /

The Acting phief Postmaster at Timaru telegraphed, as follows, to Wellington tQrday:— "Further from,the postmaster at Fairlie and the postmaster at the Hermitage reports that water is now flowing through theMnain passage of tho Hermitage. May have to leave the buildings, as . it is still raining, and the' water is rising. I am making arrangements for messages from ithe new Hermitage, if .necessary. •' /CENTRAL OTAGO. . RIVERS'.-RISING. RAPIDLY, J■ * ' . ' - Dunedin, March 28. Heavy rain has been experienced in Central Otago, as the -result of which tho rivers are rising rapidly. At Cromwell the river is as high as the flood in October last, and advices are to. 'the effect that there is every-indication of a heavy f100d;,....'.X Jl-C J -At Alexandra , this; afternoon, .'the-river •rose 2ft.-.in two hours. Heavy rijin has also been .'falling, in J)hnedin. . •• •• ■ —

HOUSES SUBMERGED. ■ , RAILWAY WASHOUTS. Gore, March' 28. The "Ensign's" Lumsden correspondent at 3 pjii. telegraphed:— , « "The river is still rising,'ahcUJOlPP' 'flowing through the lower part-of - the .town. ■ There is no sign of the rain abating." ■ : ■ Several horsemen, ■ who managed to get through from Mossburn, report' that, several wash-out 3. have .' occurred on the Mossburn lijie. •■ r 1 ■ ! • Great losses of stock arc likely in the low ; lj'ing country. , Already . Sheep are coming down the river, i . ;> , •A number of !residences are partly submerged, tho occupants..flitting,to drier, ground. ' ' Telegraphic communication with ,'To Anau is suspended,' tho wires beim; down. Tho Waikaka train, leaving Gore at 3.50 p.m., had to return, arriving at 6.15 p.m. It was'impossible to get/past Maitiand owing to the floods. There is some doubt if the express from Dunodin will get through to-night.. There are waAh-outs on the line -between Gore and Pukerau. . . : '■ • -

It is still raining, and "the Mataura Biver is rising. ■

TRAP FALLS INTO A RIVER.. YOUNG MAN DEOWNED. / Invercargill, March 28. Tho heavy rain which commenced fall-; in" on Thursday and continued without intermission since ha 3 resulted in severe floods' all over ; , 'A voang man named J. Walsh, who was driving with two brothers named Dickson at Hokpnui, near Winton, was drowned through\ the trap falling into tho Otapiri River The brothers managed to reach a small' island, whore they were marooned for some hours. ' ' . The railway services are disorganised. Tho'express train from Dunedin ■ to-night ecu Id not get through oiyinp to a washout at I'ukeraii, and the train stopped at Clinton; \Va=h-outs, some of a sotious nature, occurred on fclio Otautau, Lumsden, King, ft'.in, and 5/ossburn lines. . . 11 --avy losses of stock are feared, and reports show that dead sheep aro being washed - down by' the rivers in hundreds.