HIGH SPRING TIDES

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 91, 11 January 1935, Page 10

HIGH SPRING TIDES

Exceptional on Wednesday

WELLINGTON’S EXPERIENCE

Exceptionally high spring tides, like those which, under the influence of strong westerly wind, caused a great deal of flood damage to property at Invercargill early this week, have been experienced in Wellington during the last two or three days.

Although crowded to the seafront, Wellington beach houses are generally immune from inroads of seas, and as an off-shore wind has been blowing generally, there has been little reason to fear any approach to the damage reported from the south. To regular habitues of Wellington beaches, the exceptional tides have come more under notice than to the people residing in the city) where the harbour reveals tide abnormalities only to the very observant.

One Wellington resident pf long standing, says he cannot remember a higher tide than that recorded on Wednesday evening under the influence of a fresh southerly, and attributes lack of damage to favourable winds. “Had an ‘old-man’ southerly come up,” he said, “the city council would have been faced with a large task in repairing Marine Drive embankments.” Swimmers at the beaches are revelling in the high water, and complaints of having to “creep into the water,” even at half to low tide, are nonexistent. Divers from the top boards at Te Aro Baths plumb the depth with the utmost confidence, for there is more than twelve feet of water beneath them. Probably the only inroad of water, if it may be called an inroad, has occurred at tfip slip ways at the Wellington Patent Slip. The roadway at this point is brought to a low level on account of the grading to take the cradle lines. Consequently the water washed unchecked across the road, causing many a curious motorist to stop and view the spectacle. The decks of the slip jetties have been less than a foot above the water at high tide, and during the fresh southerly blow on Wednesday evening it was thought that the water would reach the top. Tiie best gauge as to the level of the water was afforded along the foreshore at Evans Bay. Pleasure craft drawn up on the small slipways were just out of reach of the seas, and in most cases the tarpaulins covering the craft were saturated.

The bathing jetty and raft at the Hataital Bathing Club at normal tide are over two feet above the level of the water, but at about 8 o’clock last night considerably less than a foot; separated the decking from the water level.

The Hutt River had a considerably swollen appearance but no damage is reported.