GALES & FLOODS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1935, 18 December 1913, Page 6

GALES & FLOODS.

MUCH DAMAGE REPORTED. RAILWAY TRAFFIC DISORGANISED (By. Telegraph.—Special Correspondent.! ■■■ ■ Wanganul, Itemiicr 17. ■■ On-Tuesday ingot \tnngamii had another severe visitation of wind and ram, winch causcd additional damage 111 tins way of Hoods and washouts. The wind blew with ttrriiic force iroiu the northwest, and extraordinarily heavy rain fell all night without ceasing. Tho weather eased tip about nine o'clock on Wednesday morning, and held oil during the clay, ihoiign the sky still wore a threatening aspect. All tho low-lying portions of tlio town and suburbs were iiooded to varying depths, and tinder St/ John's Rill mia at Aiamoho was two to three ieet of water in several places, tile storm from the hills doing considerable' damage t-o. gardens in tho lastnamed suburb, Much of the repair work necessitated by tlic rain of a. couple of days ago in tho Wang.mui and Waitotara counties was'undone, and many of tho roads, both-mem-and side, are blocked by will take' several days to clear! Telegraphic communication with Taranaki'is completely cut. off, ami the wires are down 'in eight places in the short distanco between \'\ anganui and Waitotara. Railway traffic is also hung up, | and there were 110 trains in or out of Wanganui ti!i this afternoon. The slips at Kai-iwi were cleared away to enable tho New Plymouth to Wellington express to pass through Aramoho considerably after time, but it was unable to get beyond Fordell owing to a big fall of earth on tho Wangachu Hill, and passengers by tho north and south ] bound expresses had to be transferred ! across tho gap in drags and other conveyances, a distanco of four or fiva miles. Ib is exported that the slips will l>e cleared this evening, and - traffic should' be running normally again tomorrow, Word from Marion stales that there is a 'largo slip on tho Main Trunk line near Porowa. Indications for fine weather are htill lacking, and tho barometer is being studied with some anxiety. ,

STREETS FLOODED AT MARTON.

SLIP ON MAIN TRUNK LINE.' j Marton, December 1?, Continuous rain - last night caused tile creeks and drains-in the neighbourhood of Martou to overflow, and early this morning tho main streots were- impassable. ■ In otto shop there were I'our inches of water. ■ At Jlarton Junction, in several lowlying backyards, thews was over fivo feet of water. ■ On the Main Trunk line, near Cliff Road, a big slip has com© down, estimated to lie 20ft. deep and. a chain wide. It will take eight _ hours to remove the debris, consisting of trees, mud, and metal. "A small slip is re* ported at FouloU, and so far tlio early trains have lint arrived. During . 2-1 hours to 9 o'clock this morning the lniufall was 2.37 in,—a record.

SHEARING DELAYED.

Feiloting, December 17. A furious galo with heavy rain raged all night. The streams are flooded, but there was no serio is damage. The long continued rains are delaying shearing and general farming. DAMAGE AT PALMERSTON, PaUneraton, December 17. ,nijfcraldcd,l)j,a very,.heavy, gal?, beginning 'about' 5 p.m., _ and lasting far into "Tuesday night, soaking rain fell for practically sis hours continuously, giving a total rainfall of about or.o inch. Lands are heavily flooded, and farmers say the wetness exceeds that of the average midwinter. The violence of the gale surpassed anything ever experienced in any previous December here. It lias flattened out hundreds of acres of hay crops which were at a critical stage, and moans the loss of much money to provident dairy-farmers. Fruit crops a'ro devastated. During the heiuht of the galo several windows were broken in town buddings. Ihe river made heavy inroads into properties at the end of Fitssro.v Street, where over an acre of land was oaten up by tlio ewift current.

TELEGRAPH LINES n DOWN.

MAIN TRUNK EXPRESS DELAYED. Tho iicrco gulp which wage-d through the central portion of tho North Island yesterday and the previous night has been tho means of causing serious dislocation in tho telegraph scrvico, _ whilo yesterday's Main Trunk express is nor. expected to arrive in until about 6 o'clock this morning, owing to washouts 011 tho lino between Porowa nii.l Marton. Passengers and the letter portion of tho mail were transferred at the slip and connected with tho Jsew Plymouth express at- Marton Junction. This train did not get here until 10 o'clock, instead of, as in normal tunes, about 7.M p.m. last; night a big slip was threatening between Utiku and Atangaweka, a movement iu tho ground of about two feet, having been recorded during tho day. Tho line was cleared between Porowa and Marton soon after 9 o'clock, and tho express reached Marton at 10.45 p.m., leaving again at 11. p. The train was not expected to arrive in Wellington until between 5 and 6o'clock this morning. There are now, only four telegraph liues being worked north ot Woodvilb to serve both coasts between Wellington and Auckland, and these interruptions have naturally resulted in much delay in the transmission of messages.

HTJTT RIVER UP.

The heavy rains of Tuesday were responsible for a rise in the Hutt River of 7ft. above summer level—aii abj,r,rma 1 height for this tiiiie of tho year. The river had reached its highest, early yeslerdav morning, but it- afterwards subsided" to a few feet abovo ordinary level. \ Tligs River Board's ovcrawr made an examination of tho protective works, etc., yesterday, but it is not yet known if any damage .has been done.. Tho harbour for some miles out from tho mouth of the river was tinged yellow as tho result of tho flood.

"THE most car for the least MONEY."

This lias besn tho watchword of the Willvs Overland Co, since the first Overlai—' was made. 50,000 ears arc turned out of the Overland Factory every year. This is the reason that such a full-powered, magnificently-equipped, stur-dily-mudo- car may be y«nrs tor such a low price if von Ijtiy an Overland. It. is (t well-known fact in tlw trade that the great Overland factories are uiii;uestionublv the most thoroughly. efficiently, and ceonomicnlly-civiipped and managed. The business is under the personal direction oi' the man who founded it and developed it, Mr. Jciui Willys, He it is who has insisted on giving'"mora car for less money" each season. To-day the Overland Car with electric lights, electric self-starter, electric horn, and every luxury that tho most expensive cars carry, is undoubtedly {lie triftmph of eolid value. Investieato (he Overland. A. HATItICK AND CO., J,TD., WELLINGTON and WANGANUI, Aeents for tho North Island; DUNK AND l'K INGLE. Palmerstoii North •, WACKKILL AND STEWART, I'eilding; or P. \V. REAIIDON, Masterton.—Advt. When a policeman, in response la an urgent telephone call, was sent hurrying to a house in Pittsburg TccenUy, >he found that; his services were required by Robert Norton, aged live, who requested him to arr"sst his nurse on a charge of Vnving administered au uu&avned spanklisj. ■ .