COOK STRAIT CABLES

Dominion, Volume 20, Issue 44, 16 November 1926, Page 8

COOK STRAIT CABLES

REPAIRING faults STEAMER IRIS CHARTERED According to an announcement made by the Postmaster-General (Hon. W. Nosworthy) yesterday, the Pacific Cable Board’s cable steamer Iris lias been chartered by the Government to effect repairs to two Cook Strait cables, which are unworkable owing to faults. There are six telegraph cables between Wellington and Blenheim, two frini Lyall Bay to White’s Bay, three from Oterangi Bay to White’s Bay, and one from Titahi Bay to Picton. In addition to these, there is the recentlylai-' telephone cable between Lyall Bay and Seddon. One of the Oterangi Bay cables developed a fault in July, 1924. Owing to the introduction of the machine-printing system by the Department, the carrying capacity of circuits w. ; very greatly increased, and it was considered unnecessary, at that time, to ii cur the expense of chartering a special cable repairing steamer to repair one cable. A few days ago, however, a second Oterangi Bay-White’s Bay cable became faulty. With the approach of the busy Christmas season, and the necessity of having all circuits in firstclass -order, immediate action was taken tc charter the Iris for the purpose of repairing both cables. The fault in the cable that became interrupted in 1924 has been located, by test, to be about 300 yards from the Oterangi . Bay Beach, while the fault in the recently interrupted cable has been found to be about 9 nants from White’s Bay. The Minister has received information that the board has given instructions for the Iris to proceed to Wellington in a few days and undertake the work of repair. “It may be interesting to note,” states the Minister, “that on the occasion of the previous interruption to the Cook Strait cables, in 1923, the Iris occupied eleven days in effecting repairs. The time taken, of course, depends very largely on the state of the weather. The cost of the repairs effected in 1923 amounted to approximately £2000.”