Severe Earthquake

Hokitika Guardian, 17 September 1932, Page 5

Severe Earthquake

A ROUGH TIME.

(Per Press Association- — Copyright.)

GISBORNE, September 16.

Tiniroto reports that the early morning shakes were as heavy as those last year, and mild tremors continued throughout t!he day. ‘ Widespread damage was caused, practically every chimney falling and furniture being thrown about in the wildest confusion. There were numerous slips on the hillside Surrounding trie, township. Residents,''as bn the last occasion, assembled ;on the. hotel verandah and there spent the remainder of the night.

STRUCTURAL DAMAGE.

GISBORNE, September 16

Bignell and Holmes, 'find Redstones garages, also Upton’s tyre surgery sustained structural damage.

The alignment of the back wall of llw Majestic Theatre is affected eod the theatre meanwhile will be closed. Regent' Theatre which suffered by the ■ previoui 'q'uako this time was unaffected. OTHER DAMAGE DONE. . e ! GISBORNE, September 16. Ormond’s motors lost the side wall and back portion of the premises. '. Reports from the country state the ’quake was mild at Toßomaru Bay but - severe 1 it Teararoa i Hicks Bay, Te Karaka and Nuhaka, most places suffering chimney and crockery losses. Advice received at Nuhaka at midday was that both the old. and new bridge at Wairoa were damaged. The old structure was damaged last ’quake, having collapsed into the water level 'and the end of one span- of the new bridge haying ' fallen , into the river. Telegraph' - and telephone cables carried on the old bridge were severed. In Wairoa town there was considerable damage by foiling chimneys and it is reported that Nobles’ saddlery collapsed, and-'the wall fell - out. Thompson’s bakery and' Wilson’s buildings -‘ were damaged and several verandahs fell down, r' • * ! {' . VY x QUAKE HEAVIER THAN 1931. • ■;' -WAIROA, September 16. ■ Despite l tremendous losses, the peop’e of' are bearing up bravely undeif ‘ ‘their Cumulative misfortunes. The terriflo forces of Nature - have subjected them to > a terrible , ordeal, but they have not wilted, Under gh« strain .they are true and typical . examples of Anglo Saxon .blood, Some business people have closed their premises: temporarily to clean up, JfcwhVe other have opened .up to conbusinssa amidst the debrig of « ■ tlheir stock. Large numbers of residents have lost their entire stopk of ; • crockery, iglseware, jams : and .preserve®. What they saved from th 6 wreck, of iffe great quake in 1951 has now gone. :, will be very hard on those who are xkot equipped /with the means to pui’chrAae abides, .andj.-tno doubt any as•istanCe in this direction would be ' welcomed; like residents who went through the 1931' upheaval are of the, opinion that the quake of this early morning was greater' in intensity than the former, dt .l*s safe>to say that, had. all of the ibuildbngsi .'not. ~, 'been . structurally strengthened . since. #<» 11931 disaster, probably , all of the • business places would have been Shattered to pieces. A deadly, fine of fault range® through the Marine Parad e from east to west, about twenty feet back from, the frontage;. W*th the. exception of about tthwe, buildings, almpat every building, whether in .brick, concrete or ferro concrete, has fractures", ®ome being •light while others,aTe serious. Like a lighthouse, in the desolation, there stand unpretentious buildings, .strained certainly, but not fractured, which, if they had lip®, would say to the world “Build strongly in wood j” A hurried visit through the business t*ea discloses the fact that the following business places have. come under fhe 'heading of “fractured” premise* :—Wairoa Hotel, the Post Office, / [Wilson’s Buildings (including Pidduck, ironmonger ; Clark, grocer; the fiounty ■Club ; and Prebble Bros.’ jewellers), 'Gillespie’s Pharmacy, Perry’s .Radio, Sirs Withers’, drapers; Flint’s barber and billiard saloon; the Clyde Hotel • Cash and Carry, butchers; Androgens. drapers; Mies Fraser, fruiterer; Beck’s 'Pharmacy; the Union Bank of Australia; the Bank of New " r p Zealand ; Lim Kee, fruiterer (the b.ack 1/ , of these premises was shaken down); Bakris and Zakri®, restaurant; Fletcher, footwear; McGolbrick’s Building; Osier’s Buildings (including ■Mies D. Cook, draper; W. Smith, jeweller; and 'Ostfer’s, bakers; who'e ovten is jbadly damaged and there etore’ hous*, ha# collapsed) ; J. P. :MoOre, draper;; Stephenson’s Buildings r Johansen's Buildings (including Mrs Rett-er. confectioner; Roach’s, drapers; True 'Light, fruiterer; Jo•/•han'en’s, ‘plumbnrs): Man* "n’s Build\yingS 1 (including Sweetman and FranX cis, outfitters; Hosier’s., confectioners; C \ Hannah’s, grocer: Sideline® Un’imitdd, dealeds); Burridge’V drapers; Miss Good, fancy dealer • Miss Wilson.. draper • Dooley, fruiterer; and Nobles, saddler.

ON EAST COAST OF NORTH ISLAND EXTENSIVE DAMAGE, BUT NO LOSS OF LIFE

R. Long’s brick shop collapsed, .like a pack of cards. Fortunately he and his wife and family lived in a.n, outbuilding, and escaped injury. lhe dividing wall of Miss Good’s shop was .also destroyed. . The frontage of the County Garage came down.

Dalgety.’® premises (a wooden, building of two storeys) were badly .strained, with a loss of goods. Gillespie's and Beck’s pharmacies incurred great losses, as also d'd local grocers. / .

The business places to .e;cap 6 structural (damage were:—CqrkiH’s Buildings (2), Gaiety Theatre, Bank of Australasia, Osier’® (North Clyde). A lairge -number of premises lost plate glass windows. Every business firm had tremendous losses. )T!he Shipping Company’s wool store, which was jbadf.y in the first great quake, collapsed entirely, The district of Nfihaka was badly damaged. Business .places suffered heavy I ogees.

A transport driver report® that the 'Mahia hack road had hundreds of miniature geyser®.

A fisherman at th e Heads, who early this morning was engaged laying neU. declared that the river water receded and left him high and dry before returning. Residents in the vicinity of the hill on th e eastern side of the river, near -Waiftoa, were greatly alarmed during the morning by numerous slips cascading into the water. The whole lof the kerbmg of the Marin 6 Parade was badly fractured.

•It is stated tha/t the wihole business area of Wairoa has moved two or thro© inches towards th e direction of the river. In other instances, modern buildings have subsided a similar distance.; . . .

•St. Andrew’s /Church spire is reported to have a lean from the perpendicular.

There' is a suggestion that a pontoon bridge .should 'be constructed over ,the (river, pending the completion of a ne.w bridge, as th 6 welfare and morale •of the town and district depend on immediate action to preserve communicasion north <and south.

T|he 2ZP wireless station has again been badly damaged. 1 Attempts are being made to make temporary broadcasting sets. - News from the country settlements is now filtering through. All express the one opinion that the shake was heavier than the 1931 quake though of not so long a duration, Homes at Mangapoike, Clyde Bank, Marumnrui, and Tuhara Settlements orashed to the ground or were thrown bodily off their piles. . The residents at the last-mentioned escaped through the windows. In town one home was lifted fully two feet away from its piles, and the chimney, though intact, is now bottleshaped. A second house on a hillside has an alraming lean to one side.

Ruakituri Valley is .also reported to have suffered considerably. An unverified report states there are a dozen slips and that bridges have subsided find had cracks have developed on Teuihi Hill on the main Gisborne highway making, it difficult to negotiate. The main road to Napier is open and safe for traffic, but has opened up considerably in places.

On the Lake Waikaremoana road slips- have ‘ocountrad', but it is not known if it is impossible to negotiate them.

A large number of local residents are. carrying cuts and bruises to-day as the result of their injuries from falling furniture. The new bridge, under construction, is at present a sorry spectacle. Its cylinders have a dangerous lean. Girders hlave broken clean away, and are hanging in the river. It is estimated that the loss on this alone is approximately fifteen thousand sterling-

The quake, despite its serious aspects, was not ivithoiit humour. One local resident fainted in a friend’s house. Brandy was used as a restortive to such an extent that when the patient recovered, he presented a living picture of the disciple of Bacchus, requiring further aid of a different kind to enable him to reach his home. The Public Works Department have undertaken the task of restoring the water supply. The assistance of Mr Hamilton, the Minister, in this direction, is greatly An idea of the huge task confronting the Department may he gained from the fact that over an area of fivta miles in excess of one hundred leaks have been located. It is hoped to have a temporary supply at an early date, but a complete restoration will take a long time. A further inspection of the damaged building® shows the earlier reports of the damage were not exaggerated, hut that if anything it was under-esti-mated. Many b.uiMings thought previously to have escaped damage are now found to be seriously affected structurally, very few escaping injury. Various committees were appointed this morning and are functioning nmoothily. The situation is well in band as far as finances will allow, there being an entire abseoe of chaos. Three gangs 'are busily engaged carrying out urgent repairs to the hos-

pital. A visit to the institution this afternoon disclosed the fact that the damage is far in excess of the 1931 quake damage. The X-i’ay room was thrown completly off its piles, and the plant seriously damaged. The operating theatre is in a sorry state. Through the injury to the room, the surgical instruments were thrown from their glass Cases in every direction. Various appointments have alii broken ‘away from their fastening®. The sterilising

.room shows the whole plant was wrenched avvlay, the largest steriliser being thrown right through the door some feet away. The dispensary gives the impression that a maniac was at work, broken; bottles, drugs, shelving, etc., being scattered in all parts.' The isolation ward infibadly damaged as to lie unsafe for use. A house, at L rnsertown presents a remarkable sight, being,‘.‘(broken into four complete sections. •'* inn'l Mr Jessop, of the Unemployment Board, airived by air shor ;iy before 5 p.m. to. take control of the situation from the .unemployment'point oi view. He is expected to assume authority to-morrow, when activities wi'l be renewed.

There are ample unemployed available, and it woo'd be unwise for others to come to this district.

The Mayor, Mr Harker, . stated he was very pleased at tho splendid spirit, prevailing amongst the inhabitants, and feels sure the various services will he, restored as quickly as possible. Mr Harker is doing his utmost to assist the whole community, and under hia guidance good results should be shown, for complete harmony is existing among all classes, Shakes are 'continuing every (few minutes.' They are of a minor nature, but there is an occasional sharp jolt that causes concern among ia‘ number, especially those so unfortunate a.s to have experienced the 1931 visitation.

Steady rain set in about noon and is still continuing. There is no wind, and the wefether is. not cold. However the rain has the effect of driving a large number indoors to-night, who othemvise would have remained in the open.

An endeavour was made to supply electricity to-night, but it unfortunately failed. The town presents a .pitiable sight with the number of buildings down, tlie plate glass windows fallen out, and the bridge in ruins. It is a night that '.could not he envied by many. Jiust. as the telegraph ing of this message began a very sharp jolt was experienced.

THE SEISMOGRAPH RECORD. MANY .CHIMNEYS DOWN, WELLINGTON, September 16. The recording instruments at the Dominion Observatory began recording the"’quake at between 10.25': and 10.36 aim. The shock was one of Very large amplitude, so much so that in the case of some instruments, the vibrations were more than they could record. »

At 1,48, a second strong shock came through, the two between them making a very confused record. A third fairly severe shock recorded at 2.22 lesser ones coming through at 2.59 3.14, 8.13, and 9.4. Seismographs were in vigorous motion for two hours after the initial shock. The tentative estimation of the centre of the disturbance from the preliminary study of records, would place it . about 30 miles to the east or Waipiro Bay, the disurbance probably being a deep seated one. Nuhaka reports all chimneys in the district clown. There has been no damage done at Morere.

The Postmaster at Tekaraka reports that two-thirds of the chimney® are down in the township.

The Napier service drivers report that the damage at this side of Wairoa is slight.

MESSAGES OF SYMPATHY. WELLINGTON, September 16. In connection with the earthquake messages of sympathy have been sent by the Governor-General to the Mayors of Gisborne and Wairoa, MARUMARU BADLY AFFECTED., WAIROA CONDITIONS MISERABLE

WAIROA, September 16. The earthquake seemed to affect the district of Marumaru equally as severely as it did 'Wairao. One sixroomed house was completely lifted off its blocks, and forced into a concertina shape. >

Other residences in the locality also suffered severely, practically every chimney being razed. Messages from Mangapoike indicate that the farmers there are in bad straits as the result of tho earthquake., _ Steady rain has set in at Wairoa, making the condition® very miserable for those who are camping outside. At the time' of ending, no I 'fatalities had been reported. The casualties in elude: —

Mrs J. O. Scott, broken arm. Mrs A. Dwson, injured back, and severe shock. M>* Kin". In fr artery .severed, and later hospitnlled. The B '-ougli Council met at 7 a.m. Emergency committees wove sot up to deal with the position, which is much more serious from the municipal viewpoint than in 1931. especially the immense damage to nrivnte homes. Practical ] v no residence possesses unhrohen ernckcrv and nlassware of any description. Wardrobes and other artieles of heavy furniture were tossed like corks. It was remarkable that very few chimney® and

Local Public Works officials are rendering all assistance possible. A start is being made this morning to clean all the debris in the main thoroughfare.

HAVOC AT GISBORNE.

MANY MIRACULOUS ESCAPES.

GISBORNE, September 16.. Many miraculous escapes are reported, persons rushing out of their homes, in a state of panic, and dodging by a hair-breath, falling chimnews. In several cases chimneys fell through tlie roofs on to bedrooms but,, fortunately, as far as can be gathered in no case, was anyone seriously injured.

It is not possible to give any estimate of the damage, but it must run into an enormous sum.

One large two-storey business premises, the property of J. S. Allen, plumber, and containing three shops and a plumbing show-room, has been shattered so badly that i it makes' nocessnry its complete reconstruction. Two shops in the main street, the property of tho Craig Estate, are hems scaffolded in rondinoss for completing new fronts to be putju.

In ono block of town shops, nine in «accession hays had the plate glass windows shattered, All told, some seventy or eighty plate glass windows were smashed.

In the town and suburbs, hundreds of chimneys are down, and throughout the district hundreds of tanks are wrecked. A number of . minor tremors were expereuced to-day and to-night, and heavy rain is falling this evening. In the country districts the earth is quaking practically continuously. In Mangapoike district the quakes are occurring almost regularly every five minutes. In every case they are preceded by a dull .thudding noise from far below the surface. This noise is heard, and then within a few seconds the ground commences to shake. To-night 0. G. Thornton, District Engineer, returned from a visit to the Hangaroa district, some thirty miles' from Gisborge, There he found the road blocked by a slip estimated at six hundred thousands tons,* all of it papa rock, which has fallen from a hillsjcle from a height of from 150 to 200 feet. Some of the blocks are from thirty to forty ton® in size. Mr Thorn-,, ton estimates it ..will take ten to, fift teen ih6hshrid® ; pounds to clear this slip, which blocks the Gisborne to Wairoa main highway via Tiniroto, This is not the usually-used main south road..

A portion of another slip has fallen into the Hangaroa River, which is dammed up, but ...no danger is anticipated.

SYDNEY RECORDS A 'QUAKE. SYDNEY, September 16. The earthquake was also recorded at Sydney Observatory. It recorded very small shocks, at first, just prior to midnight, local time. Later shocks were much more severe, lasting two hours, originating about 1600 miles from Sydney, slightly to the east of the New Zealand coast.

The Riverview Jesuit College Observatory, Sj'dney, lias recorded a severe submarine disturbance. It lasted for several hours between 11.5 o’clock last night, and the early hours of this morning. The centre of the disturbance is believed to be three hundred miles east of the North Island of New Zealand.

NURSES HOME DAMAGED. WAIROA, September, 16.. The new Nurses’ Home at Wairoa, consisting of 26 rooms, which was practically ready for the official opening, has been badly damaged by the earthquake, and, judging from reliable reports, it will not be fit for habitation for a considerable, period. The nursing staff have already spent two winters in tents, due to the fact that the home was completely demolished in the 1931 earthquake.

BUILDING REGULATIONS URGED CHRISTCHURCH, September 17.

“New Zealand seems to have got on the ./shake now, and goodness only knows when it is going to stop, said Dr O. 'Coleridge Farr this morning,' when urging that legislation should be passed making for the safer construction of city buildings. “I do not want to he an alarmist,” h e added, “but I think it would be foolish to sty otherwise. If it gets to Wellington goodness knows what will happen, and that is ■not impossible.”

PROTECTION FOR YOUR FRIENDS A cold i,s dangerous to your friends, family and yourself. Prevent infection spreading and ease and relieve your odd at the same time by taking Pvlmonas., Pulmonis ns they dissolve in. the mouth, give off medicated vapours which kill cold germs. They soothe and relieve coughs, sore thoats, etc. Pulmoms Is 6d and 2s 6d.

tanks collapsed locally, apparently due to the good re-construction work after the first quake. Mayor Harker, interviewed, states that the damage to the water services is very serious, and will take a considerable time to restore. He hoped to instal a temporary system shortly. Lighting and power, broke down. Several transformers were displaced, and poles out of alignment. Mayor Harker is confident t 0 have this service restored to-morrow.