QUAKE AREA

Hokitika Guardian, 5 August 1929, Page 5

QUAKE AREA

GEOLOGIST’S OPINION

(By Telegraph—Press Association),

WESTPORT, August 3. “This is probably a part, of the main fault. It is about 1£ miles from the foot of Mgunt R,adiant.| The whole contour of this part has changed so much, that it is hard to believe it is ;• the same place. Some hills have been cohered up or have sunk, and there ■ are ''fhundreds ofacres of mud,' rocks and broken tim(ber from the main slips, which have been buried 50 feet deep. Two miles down the valley, some of the spurs leading to the top of Mount Radiant have broken off " and flattened • right out. The fault is across the Valley arid parallel to the main range,” writes Mr W. Rex (Te Namu) in the Westport News. I think the great disturbance that has take.n place in the Blue Duck Valley;, Te . Marnu, (should be investigated. I fwas up this Valley a few days .ago with Mr Auton, the only settler living there. I was in this valley a few years ago, an ( d thank my lucky stars that I was out of it during the big shake. Five chains from' where we lived the ground has sunk about 15 feet, forming a big slip or Terrace across the paddock:' arid into the bush, how far I cannot say. As far as we could see, the trees are thrown over. 1 am sure the ground has sunk. Mr E. Do Malmanche, who was out with Dr IBoussard, the Swiss geologist (understood to bo residing at Dannevirke) cortfirms the previous reports of the big upthrust at Llewellyns on the Coast north of Mokihinui. Crayfish,' crabs, shellfish, and mussolls on stones are all in evidence. Dr Boussard is reported as saying that never before in the history of the world has an earthquake done so much damage to land as was done by that in New Zealand on June 17.”

Earthquakes are still in evidence. The biggest was at 6.28 on Saturday evening, with several lesser shakes during the night, and to-day.