Terrible Weather at Westport

Feilding Star, Volume VIII, Issue 91, 8 February 1887, Page 2

Terrible Weather at Westport

t (rBB UNITED PBESB ASSOCIATION.) i Westpobt, February 7. s Communication with the outside 1 world has been suspended from Friday night up to 3 p.m. to-day, i Later reports shove that the damage i to the roads in all parts of the Buller 7 district is even greater than at first * supposed. The Denniston, Mokihi- ' I nui, Charleston, and Maramea roads hare all suffered through slips and I breaking of bridges and culverts; T while on the main Buller road, con* i necting with Greymouth and Nelson, i the slips are astonishing in size and i numbers. The road is cut off at the 1 | mountain and follows the Buller river, 1 and the sudden torrents of rain and \ terrific gales of wind of Friday night, ? coming immediately after a long spell I of exceptionally dry weather, brought . the mountain side in many places ; down on the roads. It is estimated ' that a month must elapse before wheeled traffic can be resumed, and ' horses will not even be able to get ! through for a week. The coach, how- ', ever, carries the mail through this afternoon. The rivers were in high flood, and the driver of Hall's coach had an escape from being drowned. The weather has been altogether peculiar, and hail fell yesterday, when a day or two previously it was 80 in the shade. No such damage to the roads has ever been done in the district before. The country will have a difficulty in meeting the extra expenditure immediately re-j quired.