GROUND SUBSIDENCE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 15 July 1929, Page 5

GROUND SUBSIDENCE

AT TAHUNA '.'"' TWO HOUSES EVACUATED • /,Two houses on the. hillside adjacent to the'. Rocks road between Magazine Joint and the Tahuna waiting shed were suddenly twisted upon .their foundations'by the subsidence of. a large slice of the hill on Saturday night. One house belongs to and is occupied 1 by Mr Geo; Cunningham, manager of the An.choriFouhdry, and the other, by Mr 1W. Both families moved out at once on Saturday night for fear of a big; slip taking place and a number t)f volunteers helped to remove the contents from the damaged dwellings. To.all appearances a large area of hillside including l the sections on>. which the two houses stand has become loosened* andis sloWly.bi-eaking away from the :p*rent'body., '■: ? . ... ~ SmaU; cracks;' evidently the first signs of the movement -were noticed about midday on Saturday, but the main sub- ■ 'sidence did not. take;place until about .'midnight. The sudden, dropvof' the land ' has 'wrenched both houses" from their piles. ' Both houses < have been further damaged because of a greater subsidence on one side which has/.so to speak, broken the buildings' back*. Th e ,main line of'Cleavage runs> up the hill .to, Moana road in the , Surfaces of which rit shows "as a fissure'from. 6 inches .to. 10 inches in' width, about 30 yards long and 4 or 5 feet deep" The affected piece of land has to-day -advanced; another 1 five inches or, so and the cracks, in this ground are now visiVble for a much greater distance. An area of fromlthroe to. four acres seems to be bordered by .cracks onthe, up-hill ,'sidef The large size of the' slip makes ' it' appear unlikely t/hat it will be possible to re-stabilise the two houses con- • cerned. ■.''.• ■ ,; '" ' ?'■' THe.effect of the slip as,far down as the Rocks' road is shown by the dis,'placement of a telegraph pole winch now leans;. outwards at a considerable .'angle. • . ••• • . .' .}.ThV.City; Engineef.^Mi!;J,,.G.. Littlec. John) has made an-examination of the kcalityi. He, informed a "Mail*! reporter to-day that the slip is undoubtedly one of the indirect results of the : earth-. , quake. Small .-fissures-,, formed at the* ''"time' of' the big shake have allowed a considerable! lynpuntof water'! from the . recent . heavy rains to penetrate the hillside. The movement stopped yesterday but; the rain,, which' began again in the early hours this, morning 'started it slowly off again. '.■''■.'■■'' • A vmnour around the. city this morning that eight more familjes left their homes in the locality, last riight' is without foundation. ■ •,•.-'.-.. /-',"•"' :' '■' -'•' „■—— , , ' '.