RETURN OF BLACKOUT CONDITIONS

Rotorua Morning Post, Issue 5328, 14 February 1947, Page 5

RETURN OF BLACKOUT CONDITIONS

j — | ( Prcss Assn.-

STREEt LIGHTING CUT FLAMETHROWER 1DEA NOT EFFECTlVc %

—Rec. 9.30 ,p.m.) /

LONDON, Feb. 13. j The Fuel Ministry armounced | that drastie euts in street, lightj ing, amounting almost to black- | out conditions, would be im- ; uosed. Traffic lights would be | "xcepted. Th'e Ministry warned I that the gas position was getting ; serious and asked the public not to light gas fires or water lieatcrs if they had other forms of ^olid fuel. aThe people must get lown to really serious economy," Tie Ministry added. Although 24,500 tons of coal was saved yesterday compared with 22,500 tons the day before, the cjr/erall nosition was still critical. Domestic "onsumere co-operated more to-day, For all generating stations under the "ontrol of the Central Electricity Board, last. week's figures showed (00,000 tons of coal consumed and 550,000 tons delivered. v

Coal on Way to London Seventeen coal trains, carrying >500 tons are on the way to London, representing one-fifth of London's daily consumption under the restrictions. Altogether 38 colliers have 'eft north-eastern ports for London, '•Arrying 70,000 tons. Another 43 are ready to sail later to-day. The Admiralty has received orders to aid ♦he coal fleet gale-bound in the JTyne. Half a million tons of coal are beld up in frost-paralysed railways marsballing yards in the nortb. Troops are standing by to clear the snow-blocked lines. The War Office has already decided ♦hat flamethrowers. are not effective 1(,r the .iob. buf is urgently consideruig the lise of bulldozers* and bther nilitafy eouipment. Army convoys u e reinforcing road transport, much il" which is still snowed up in many pait? of the eountry.

Eleven Staffordsbire villages in storm-wracked northern Britain are anxiously awaiting the parachuting of their first food supplies for ten days. Four-engined bombers are standing by to drop 20,000 pounds of bread, fats, cbeese, and sugar. An attempt was made to-day to drop supplies to two villages in south-west Xorthumherland. At the ^'illage of Longnore the people stood by with huckets c.f soot to make a Idack cross on the snow as a guide ♦o the ijlanes. One canister of food was dropped 1 ere, but the weather was too had to complete the programme and the planes will try again to-morrow. Some of the villagers have been iiving dn seraps since Ihe week-end. the only fgpd in the village store '■eing a few jars of jam. The inhabitants of the East Norfolk * astal village of Tlorsey are trying to elear road snowdrif'ts with a tractor. The villag'ers have heen .vithout coal for three weeks. They obtained bread when men crossed 'he fields to 1 1* o neighbouring village of Waxham. The people of several isolated Staffordsbire villages who havp been existing on milk and potatoes* f orced way to Leek and took baclc provisions on sledges. In Warslow the 450 inhabitsftits are alsor existing on milk and notatoes. Further clouding Londoners' outlook, scores of tobacconists have been notified that cigarette quotas will he cut down owing to shortages caused 1> V the power cuts. Stocks of candles, which increased in price yesterday, are also running low. Temperatures in all parts of Britaim except the south-west are again below freezing point to-day and the forecast is for a continuation of wintry weather. In Berlin, Allied officials anj ncunced drastie electricity cuts for large areas of the citv. Power in the British, American and French sectors will be off from G a.m. to 10 p.m. except for short mealtime periods. Public health officials said 94 people had died of cold since January 9. Australia's dwindling coal stocks have forced the complete stoppage of sieel production.