VELOCITY OF WIND

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 139, 9 December 1929, Page 11

VELOCITY OF WIND

HIGHER THAN EVER BEFORE

HOW CREWS WERE BAYED

British Official Wireless.

(Beceived 9th December, 11 a.m.)

KTTGBY, Bth December. The exceptionally violent gale which struck Southern England on Friday night and was continued yesterday, was renewed with severity to-day, and the forecast indicates continuance of stormy weather. At its height, the velocity of the wind yesterday reached 108 miles an hour, which is a record for England. This figure was recorded at the Scilly Islands.

There were- many casualties on land and sea. Off Hartland Point, on the rugged coast of North Devon, tho Cardiff steamer Kadyr, 2000 tons, with a. crew of 21, was lost. After appealing

for help, which, owing to the mountainous seas, could not be given, sho then disappeared. Lifeboats from Appledore and Clovclly attempted to put to sea, but the vessels could not bo launched. After several unsuccessful attempts the Padstow lifeboats put to sea to search for survivors, bat it is unlikely that any could have survived. The last hoard from the vessel before sho settled down was that the crew were taking to the boats.

A DARING EXPLOIT.

Reports of many other shipwrecks and disasters at sea during yesterday's gale come to hand. Tho crew of the small French steamer Ornais, of Trouville, which went ashore at Penzauce, probably owe their lives to the daring exploit of a young man named Laity. High seas and dangerous rocks prevented tho lifeboat from approaching the Ornais, and the hurricane rendered hopeless attempts to savo the crew by rocket apparatus. Laity dashed into tho sea and gained rocks, from which ho was able to pass a rope to the Orniis. While so engaged one of the crow was washed overboard, but Laity rescued him. All the crew were saved.

Temporary repairs to her rudder having been effected, the Blue Star liner Andalucia, bound from London to South America, with 122 passengers, was able to dispense with the assistance of an Admiralty tug, which was dispatched from Plymouth in answer to her earlier messages.

Tiio crew of the barge .Mystery of Harwich, which, broke away from her moorings in Dover Harbour, and was driven ashore, were saved by the breeches-buoy.

A lifeboat from Newhaven succeeded in taking off the crew of the fourmasted Norwegian- barque Maglh Koch, ■which was driven ashore near Eastbourne. The crews of tho Shorelmm and Belscy lifeboats had a very hard time, spending the u-liolo of Friday night niul part of Saturday at sea iv efforts to assist tlio Hungarian vessel Honved, which, however, was in the end able 'o proceed. All shipping was stormbound yesterday in the Mersey River.

Reports from Brest this evening slated that several vessels are in imminent danger oft' the coast. Signals asking for assistance were received late this afternoon by several wireless stations on the South Coast of Ireland and England from vessels which had become- unmanageable in the storm, and several others reported themselves in temporary difficulty. The CrossChannel services were suspended owing to the storm, but were resumed to-day nndor great difficulties. All Imperial Airways services were stopped. Falling trees and chimney stacks brought down by the galo accounted for the sixth death on land yesterday;