FLOOD DAMAGE.

Hokitika Guardian, 14 May 1923, Page 4

FLOOD DAMAGE.

DEVASTATION ON MIDLAND LINE. GAP BETWEEN TWO TUNNELS. A UHIDOE NECESSARY. (•• Lyttelton Times.”) Over many miles on the Midland line, the track is broken or blocked by slips, washouts, breakages and interruptions of various descriptions. At practically every yard there is evidence of the tremendous force of ilie onslaught made by flood waters on the permanent way. The mere submergence of the line under masses ol alluvial wreckage is too common a feature to bo reckoned in the computation of the things that matter in causing • the blockage of the line. |.'nr miles and miles there is practically a chaotic miscellany of wreckage ol various kinds—of the embankments, and bill-sides, the ballasting and the track sides, some great, many small, bu.t all threatening the security ol the line and many involving the track it--c!i in lln * general catastrophe that ~(■(.nis to have fallen on the whole count reside. AN VOLY CHASM. The damage to the line that matters is contained in about five miles (bat lie between Otarama and Broken River. Commencing at Otarama, the agencies of destruction have presented an impressive prelude by the tearing l away of about lot) loot of the hillside, I leaving a chasm that is sufficiently impressive in its ugliness to cause a shudder. The climax is near Broken River, ami it is a fitting climax to so impressive a beginning. Here the water lias chosen its ground so effectively that filling will be as hopeless as a deviation is unthinkable. I unnel mouths, a low chains apart, look out on ail awesome gap that opens almost at one's I'ect and presents a preeiptous drop to the muddied waters of the Broken River, a long distance below. Above, the mountain sides rear their s: erred, disfigured sides to remote heights. The whole spectacle is that uf an awful but cunningly laid snare challenging the ingenuity ol the repair gangs. And between those two impressive breaks there are smaller pictures in keeping. Away beyond Broken River, there are. of course, other iinpendiments in l rathe, but they are minor things. The real damage to the line is between Utmanni and 'Broken River, and the worst damage is at the mouth of the No. !> tunnel. INTO THE SNOW COUNTRY.

The ordinary passenger train I milt Christchurch on Thursday bad Springfield for its terminus, am! that will be the terminus for some weeks to come. Jus! v.-ady to leave the station was a work train, bound for the farthest

aeeessitsle point on the line—the great gap at Otarama. The tiny van which offered the sole passenger ai-eommodn-tion contained a strange collection of people, among whom there predominated the men whose business it is to rebuild what Nature lias torn down. Two trucks tlinl were also bitched to the engine carried a miscellaneous assortment of implements, material and hand trolleys, among which were supplies for the men along the line and the baggage of men whose business demanded that they should penetrate as far as train, trolley, and foot could take them. REGION OE SUNSHINE. Ibe weather "as tine, and the stilt shone generously front it skv that had few clouds. Christchurch people bad left the fit in tnile- behind them, and laced lb-" dazzling whiteness of the snow-covered mountains with expectancy and pleasure. "Hie smell of the snow was in the air, and gave added ehaviu t > a wealth of suits],im 1 that bad become almost a memory. Men going into remote regions along the wreck strewn line talked of wavs and mentis —which were mainly interpreted in trolleys and feet and rbe respective capabilities of those impedciitu.us methods ul locomotion. In a corner, a few men swore unremittingly, but without beat or turmoil, at the things that swearing could nut mvint. Outside an official who had been there before, took out a little note book amt recited to another, item by item, the things that bad happened along the line. It sounded like the repetition of a catalogue. The little ear rattled and swayed along at the end of the short train, gaining the higher lands that afforded so striking a contrast in Lite orderly -ceue which the already drying loner levels presented. THE OTARAMA SI,TO. Every yard covered took one to sunnier, brighter weather. The air was crystal clear, and the sunshine seul back the vivid whiteness of the snow-covered mountains Hint only here and there, showed a small, misty cloud, to shroud the hard, dead whiteness of their snowy mantles. It might have been a day in mid-sum-mer. The Otarama slip opened unexpectedly. without, any introductory signs of serious wreckage to act as a preparation. The work of making the deviation had already progressed far. and the preparations for the laying of the new track will not occupy long.

The hill ;ii l!iis (mint is I'airlv sleep, becoming progressively steeper as it rises, but it does not present a very difficult grade at the level of file slip. Just above the wa-ii-niit there were, until the repair gangs started operations, the traces of an old road. This load did good service in the old days when the railway was being constructed. In the course of its long years of disuse it had become overgrown with grass ami tussock, ami its outline had been almost obliterated here and there by the collapse of its bank's. Rut it still presented a workable pathway, needing only widening, levelling and general repair work to make it capable of serving the purposes of emergency. By Thursday evening the approaches to this old road had been cut, and it was being levelled and pul in order, ft forms a complete pathway round the wrecked portion of the line, and will give the trains a safe way through, though passengers will undoubtedly experience a thrill at the spectacle of the gap in the hillside and the dizzy drops that mark the path of the wrecakage to the waters of the \Yaimakariri. A PECULIAR WASHOUT.

The Otaramn washout is peculiar in this respect, that it does not present a direct breakaway of the earth from a definite point. A great cavernous Dole that opens beside the track runs level with it for some little distance, the land on the lower side still remaining intact. Then, turning at about right angles, it breaks down and out through the hillside. At the point of iius breakaway the slip bites deeper into the hill, going right beyond the other side of the track. The indications are that the water, having found an entrance in volume beside the track, rapidly brought the ground in the immediate vicinity to a semi-solid state. The accumulation of weight and tlio destruction of the solidity of the hillside continued till a weakness on the lower side presented a gap that was immediately converted into a monstrous sluiceway. From the bottom of this crater the sides rise almost perpendicularly, and give promise of further collapses. HAVOC IX THE HILLS.

From the point of this slip the evidence of the abnormal force of the water, and of the huge volume that must have dashed down the mountain sides, is everywhere apparent, but in most cases the line itself has fprtun-

atcly been treated to nothing more serious than deposits of alluvial wreckage, which, though they constitute blockages, arc easy of removal. The slips are almost countless, every hillside being torn with furrows and tanlike scars of greater or lesser magnitude. Eeverywherc there is water, splashing down rocky declivities from eerie heights tit broken, foaming, sparkling cascades, winding in small streams down new-made and temporarv courses and issuing in great jets at the faces of cliffs and cuttings from some hidden and plentiful reservoirs within. Walking along the track is one moment easy and the next precarious—a maze of waterholes and silt bidden snares. Here and there small quantities of the ballast have been swept away, and at other points, whom the ballast lias held, the water has deposited thick layers over ballast, rails am! everything. And always there arc the small slips, waiting for the clearing shovels of the repair men. THROUGH THE TUNNELS.

The tunnels in this region are 1111mctyiu.s, and to go through them on foot is a proceeding fraught with unknown chances. One or two are practically dry, save where the water hurries along at the sides. In others the passage is a veritable shower bath, with tin- oozy quag under foot. Streams ; ,f water, as front a hose, shoot with considerable force from small boles in the sides, while, at other places, the interstices between the bricks giv furtlt volumes of water that lull like curtains. Amid such an assault of water one fails to note the dripping lbat i- everywhere. Progress under such conditions is not speedy, but there is no opportunity for ennui. The discomforts of the track and the excitement of taking one's chance in the tunnels apart, the wreckage of the hillsides commands unflagging at teiilion, just as the wild grandeur ol scan, of the finest scenery in the Dominion gets the full appreciation which slow travel amid it permits. There are many eases where great slips and subsidences, at points on the hillsides that are not particularly steep, have occurred lor reasons that is it iliflieuli to assign in detail. Whole acres ol hillside give one the impression ol having become rotten, and to have sagged in a half fluid and utterly unstable mass. They speak eloquently of the presence of. large volumes ol water moving underneath. A BROCK ED TUNNEL. At Staircase, men were working tn the station yard on the construction work that is in progress there. This favoured spot suflered tut damage from floods. Almost surrounded by great peaks down which the snow spread almost to the level, it looked up to a sky that showed no cloud anywhere. It seemed a little elysiutn guarded by the mountains Irom the wreckage on either side. Just beyond. however, the earlier scenes were . open ted. and as the track wound round the sides of the mountains and pierced tunnel alter inline!. It was the same store of washouts, slips ami glu-

l!nuns deposits of mud and shingle. Tunnel No. (i, its farther end issuing into a shed-like structure of great beams and three trunks, recalled (tie slip that, in It'll <B. blocked the traffic at t!tis point. The structure stood the to-l of the attacks ..I the last lewdays, and spoil washed front the hills above was shot over the precipice without the lino being damaged. Ihe etui of tunnel No. 8 presented a difierent spectacle. Save for a small opening high up at the top of the arch, just Urge enough for a man to craw-1 through, it was entirely blocked. Outside, a bill "f loose shingle, a-

;b as the top of the tunnel, made a

'.erv ■uh-dantial blockage on the truck. Efoiu the steep hillside above thousand-- of tons of spoil hail come down, leaving a small gully to mark where it had been. It spread right over the track, spilled down the other side and sprawled into the tunnel tor about twenty card ErijM! the point of view of the actual w•■iglii ui material to be moved, it picsent- a quite serious obstacle, hut it is one that is easily dealt, with and which calls for Hie use ot shovels alone. THE WORST SRI R.

The elid nl tllllilcl No. !i i- the scene of l lit- most serious slip. A brief distance separates this iinmoi from the next one. Above, the mountain side rear- a precipitous -lope that goes aw ay up to the regions of the snows. Below there is an abrupt and awesome drop to lbe level of the river lied. Ibe spot i- a cairn that seems to be midway between earth and sky and a long wav from both. Out of the mountain side tin* waters have cut a wedge-like gap that has bitten deeply. For e space of I2'» IVet the permanent way has disappeared, and an ugly gulf cuts oil' one tunnel from the other. Ovoi it, like a .suspension bridge, bangs the railway line, every sleeper sliil in place. The only passable crossing is hv ibis novel .suspension bridge. H is an eerie business. The hanging wreckage of the line vibrates at each step, and at the middle, one prays for Mire feet as the great swing sways-. One stands over the centre of a great gulf, and boulders are visible far down between the sleepers. This tavern falls away almost sheer to where the Broken River, its muddy waters boiling in their rush, looks a thing infinitely far off. There is desolation above and below, and death in one misplaced step. To the railway repair man, the crossing of a terrifying bridge of that kind is part of (he day's work. It is the only way of cross,Mg and as he must cross, lie takes it, his feet displacing the shingle that still dings to the sleepers, and sending it rattling into the abyss beneath. it. is the mending of this break that will lengthen the restoration of railway communication with the Coast. Deviation is utterly impossible, ana filling the gtij) is equally beyond the .scheme of practical things. A bridge will have to be built, and, before it can lie started, the rest of the line must be in a stale to permit of the transport of the necessary material. The finding of sure emplacements for piles may prove difficult in such a mass of shaken wreckage. To the lavmr,:it looks a most arduous task. Stones are moving continuously, filling the air with a rattle that seems to respond to the distant drone of the waters far down. The sound scarcely ceases, sinking to minute proportions as small pebbles dart down singly, only to swell again a- rolling stones gather companions and bring miniature landslides, or as larger boulders break from the loosened mass and make a noisy flight. A start with the bridge here will be made at the earliest possible moment,, and supplies, where they are available, will be drawn from such portions of the lire as are not cut off from this section. Tu a moving train this spot is little more than a flash of daylight between two tunnels, but passengers who are observant during that instant will see a spectacle that will make them welcome the blackness that, when the next tunnel is reached, tells them they are safely across.

ESTIMATES OF DAMAfiE. CHRISTCHURCH May 12. With the stui at last shining over a sodden countryside, and the Hood waters rapidly subsiding attention is turning to a survey of the position, and estimates of the damage caused. As yet the estimates of the damage are largely guess work. A reliable authority places the damage to bridges alone at £50,000. and bridges are only one item in a long list. The Railway Department is unable as yet to even guess at what the total repair bill will

hs for the tracks. On the North line nlono there is two months’ work for largo gangs before the line is returned to it's normal state. Rond erosion and slips, damage to private property, and destruction of crops as well as the hold up of business all go to swell the total cost which in North Canterbury alone is expected by some authorities to reach £IOO.OOO. No estimate of the damage to the Midland railway line can be made, though it is known it is very great.

ON OVERLAND RAILWAY. TRAINS ON TUESDAY. GREYMOUTH, May 12. Tlu> Railway Department intimates that trains will run from Arthur’s Pass tu Springfield on Tuesday hut i( will he necessary for passengers to (liange trains at No. 0 tunnel. The walking distance will he short hut passengers arc advised to bring not more luggage than they can comfortably carry from train to train. Particulars of further services are to he advertised later. £100.0Df) DAMAGE. CHRISTCHURCH May 13. Damage to the extent of £IOO,OOO, a c a result of the recent floods, is estimated by some nuhorilirs to have occurred in North Canterbury alone. Tin -,vnter is rapidly subsiding everywhere. Saturday was fine-and sunny. Repairs to the north railway line are expected to provide two months work fur large gangs of men. ’1 lie I.linage to the Midland line cannot vet be estimated, though it is known to lie very large. A relief fund for the Ivniapoi flood victims has been opened in C'ltiist-•hnt'-h. DUNEDIN THREATENED WITH ANOTHER FROOD. DUNEDIN, .May 13. The north end of Dunedin City is threatened with another flood which may probably be as serious and as disastrous as the visitation three week: ago. Rain commenced to fall about 2 a.in. to-day and lias continued it; a steady downpour ever since with m; indications of clearing at the time of writing (4 p.m.) The two streams which junction below the Rotani a’ Gardens have both overflowed (heir banks again and threaten trouble. Lindsay’s Creek which flows through the North-East Valicy is practically as high as it was three weeks ago, hut the water of the Leith, the other stream, is not yet swollen to the extent it was on the evening of the 22nd ultimo. In North-Easi Valley, many houses have been vacated, and prep mil iotvs are being made to leave others. It is probably safe to say that a hundred families will have left their homes befotv dark lie:-' sets in. In tuanv ot iLe-e eases lee uater has not yet enlenyl tire hou-es but the people fear a repetition of the previous visitation, and hnvo left as a precautionary measure. The main street at the i timer ol the Botannical Gardens, is impassable. the water being three feel deep in [h ■ middle of the thoroughfare. In fact a. lire,-' section of the residential aria I etwren hind-ay's bridgin Nurlh-E.tsi: Valley, ami the Gardens is inundated to a depth varying from tint to three feet. In Woodhnngh Yah-y there is a vast velum’ ul water pouting down the ReilV hut it i- not quite so serious as are. however, ru-hiug down Duke street like a mill-rat At the lower end of the 1.-ill! the Harbour Terrace, within a ten chains of the Dunedin Railway Station, is- again badly affected, the tut'! 1 in the street, being from lliti ein four feet deon. a:ul up to the n indue sill- in many lions--. Some ol the bridges nhieh cross the water of t!■ • l.eitli were bridle shaken ii. tin- previous Hoods and will doubtless lie severely tested, should tie-.-traatn continue to li-e as i; threatens to do. 'I he south end i f Ihe > ily is only slightly affected mi far but the resident ■ are apim-licu-ivc and preparations are being made to vacate the bolt -a-. It is vat too early to give any idea a.- to the railways but ir is known that s.-veral minor slip-; are threatened between Sawyer'- Bay and .Mihiwake. Rarer- gang- el' men are guarding tin red >\;m I. •tween Ibe eitv and \\ i.e/aiiii tu pre lent the vale! Irom Honing ihrough Cavarsliant Tunnel, which is credited with being largely responsible for the Hood in South Dunedin and Car ’i-sham three weeks ago. Taieri Plains, which are not it-a f,em water from the last flood, are mm ii more seriously threatened on this , a;.-i ,11. The protective banks were br.)k: n in several places at North Taieti tm April 22 anil I'resit breaks haw now bc-n made, so that the indication-. are that Tt.cn fanners will he in a sorry plight. Bridges and approaches have bean washed away and lhe water on mill's "f roads vai b'-t from two feat to three and a half feat deep. Part of the town of Mo-giel is under water and the stocks are being removed to safety. Latest 1A.38 p.m.) For the last half-hour rain Ims cased off. and the 'reports front the North End arc that the danger may he past, as the water has commenced to ret > do. Fp to 3.30 p.m.. two inches of r.ttti had