EXTRA FOOD TAKEN

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 516, 27 April 1933, Page 5

EXTRA FOOD TAKEN

NOW TWELVE DAYS iOUT IN" TARARUA RANGES MANY SEARCHERS WORKING . Wellington, Wednesday.. Over fifty mountaineers are exploring the Tararua Ranges and valleys in the hope of discovering the lost tr-ampers. Traxnpdng clubs of Manawatu, Wairarapa and Wellington are co-operating, and it is thought possible that the totaj number of searchers is now approaching 100. They have the co-operation of the radio emergency corps, which' has estaiblished communieation iwith Holdsworth, Unfprtunately, throughout the whole of the week visibility on the ranges ha3 .been particularly bad and the weather very adverse. Until yesterday all seai'ch parties were unable to do effective work, being- held up in many cases by unfordable streams. Yesterday, with a south- . erly wind blowing, the high country was compar-atively clear, though a snowstorm was reported. It ds also fortunate that rivers are commencing to go down. W-hen the missinig. party left the Matawai hut on the Manawata side of th'e range on Saturday week they were fiye hours' walk from Ohau, their starting point, and the total time of the traverse to Holdsworth is estimated at 15 hours' hard going. They were followed towards, Holdsworth by a party which was one hour and a half behind them, -a.nd never caught up, as this following party considex*ed the weather too dangerous and turned back. - jExperienced trampers believe that one of the party mdight have met rwith an accident, f-orcing them to -seek shelter in the bush, since it has •been impossible to get out owing to bad visibility. They have been on th'e mountains .twelve days, but the cheering information was received yesterday afternoon that, contrary to a previous report, the missing pai'ty carried extra food with the intention of leaving some for tatare use at the Holdsworth mountain hut. No anxiety is, therefore, felt on this account, but 'the continued bad weather, with snow and blizzards, makes it imperative to discover them without delay.