RAIL SERVICES

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 36, 12 February 1931, Page 15

RAIL SERVICES

REPAIRING DAMAGE

GOOD TEAM WORK

GENERAL MANAGER'S PRAISE

Only thoso in the Napier area who saw the condition of the railway lines before they were repaired can realise what a pleasant surprise residents received'when tho trains appeared, as if by.magic, in Napier. Otane-was the nearest point the trains could reach on Wednesday morning. There were tremendous difficulties in regard to water. Tho tanks were down •at Hastings and the electric and gas pumping machinery from the artesian source was out of commission. The turntable at Napier was not working, and had to be pushed round by hand, like a ship's capstan, by a big gang. Many other minor factors made reconstruction difficult, but the twisted lines and wrecked embank' ments were reconditioned in a remarkably short time. The General Manager of Eailways (Mr. H. H. Sterling), who returned to Wellington last night from the devastated area, said to-day that ho could not speak too highly in praise of the work done by the engineers and workmen who were responsible for the restoration in siich quick time. AVhen news was recevied in Wellington that such serious results had accrued from the earthquake, a breakdown gang and crew was at once engaged and was on its way in less than two hours; Local gangs also got restoration under way immediately. Notwithstanding that the line had been very badly damaged the Department was aWo to have train connection with Hastings by Wednesday night, and on the Thursday night following tho earthquake the trains again steamed into Napier. In addition to the line being badly twisted there was considerable subsidence of the banks, especially where they crossed swamps. The approaches to most of tho bridges had also sunk considerably, and two of the bridges were somewhat seriously damaged. Tho bridges have been temporarily repaired, allowing th,e trains to pass over them, and permanent repairs are being put in hand immediately. In the meantime the Department is able to work all traffic to and from Napier, though speed has necessarily been restricted over some of the sections. ■ ' j ■ . VALUE OF "THE BAIL. "There is no doubt," said Mr. Sterling, "that the beneficial effect of the prompt restoration of th© railway connection not only came as a great surprise to the people of the district, but also had a very marked beneficial effect on the people generally. Expressions of great surprise and satisfaction that the trains were again running to Napier were heard on all hands, people feeling that with the resumption of rail communication they were again /in touch • "'" the outside world. , "From a morep ractical point of view the restoration of the ling completely solved tho transportation problem. ; The Department had organised itself for the maximum of traffic, and was prepared in the event of a general evacuation being ordered, to deal with tho whole population in a matter of hours. There is no doubt that in the earlier stages the , great assistance given by tho various motoi' organisations was invaluable-, and I desire to pay a. tribute to what ha& been done m that connection. With the blocking of tho streets and the undertaking of the work of clearing, the continued operation of road vericles had become well nigh impossible. The necessity for1 an effective check on entries into and exits from the district also necessitated transport being concentrated through one channel, and this was made possible by the operations of the Railway Department in' association with the local organisations. The whole business has been effectively covered from, the beginning, and there has been no hitch in the operations.necessary for transport. The Railway Department had undertaken the free carriage of all that was necessary into the district, and. refugees have also been evacuated by the Department in large numbers free of charge. The great value of the railway has been amply demonstrated in connection with the removal of cot cases. A largo number of bogey vehicles, which make for very steady running, were immediately con-, centrated on the district, and this has made possible the removal of those who were seriously injured to various hospitals in other towns with the minimum of discomfort. : "The men of the Department set about their work quietly but vigorously. Th© absence of fuss, and the smooth running of the omergency organisation which had been developed, made for prompt and effective results, achieved with a, quietness which made the appearance of the first train in Napier a still, greater surprise, but byno means less indicative of the best concerted effort." LINES NORTH OF NAPIER. Mr. Sterling said the engineers of the Department had made a preliminary survey for some miles of the railway north of Napier, and had found that portion of the line to be in a very bad state. The West Shore embankment, along which the railway line and the road run, has been very seriously damaged, and one span of tho big concrete bridge running across the Inner Harbour was completely down. Beyond tho West Shore the line had suffered considerably, and a preliminary inspection had indicated that it would _be many months before traffic conditions could be restored. A more thorough inspection would be made immediately to determine the full extent of the damage. The preliminary investigation indicated that the large viaducts on this section of the line'were still intact. The line between Napier and the port had also suffered very severely. Thp line had been badly twisted, and at Pandora Point the line had been completely blocked by a large slip. There was a large quantity of wool in store, at Port Ahuriri, at present at the mercy of the elements. Feeling that it was a matter of emergency to have this wool transported to places where it would bo in safety the Department had concentrated on restoring tho port line as soon as possible. Tho engineors have surveyed tho job, and a large gang has been put on. It was anticipated that the restoration of tho line to the port would bo sufficiently forward to enable traffic to be worked to-day. PORT DAMAGE. "The damage to the port has been very oxtensive," said Mr. Sterling. "I have no knowledge of the conditions of the harbour from a navigating point of view, but the West Quay has been very seriously damaged, and its restoration will bo a work of very considerable magnitude. As regards the breakwater wharf, acce.'!3 to it has been completely cut off, both from the port and from Napier, by slips which are colossal in dimensions and will take a long time to clear. The restoration of rail communication, however, will give the large quantity of wool now at the port transport.1 It is sincerely to be hoped that the weather which so far has held up will continue to do so, as a heavy fall of rain would undoubtedly result in a serious loss of this wool." SAVING THE MEAT. Anothor transport problem, said Mr. Sterling, was that of dealing with the

position of the freezing -works in the district. A large quantity of meat was stored at the Pakipaki, Tomoana, and Whakatu works. Pakipaki seemed to have suffered the most severely. Immediately the line was restored tho work of transporting tho meat from these works was commenced. A large supply of freezing wagons was concentrated, and immediately these were loaded they wero sent forward by special trains. There was no doubt that this kept the loss on meat down to a comparatively small figure. Clearing tho other works was still proceeding, every facility being concentrated on it. Had it not been possible to iomove tho meat from all these works promptly the loss would have been enormous.