THE WEATHER.-HEAVY FLOODS.

Southland Times, Issue 1304, 6 September 1870, Page 2

THE WEATHER.-HEAVY FLOODS.

The unsettled weather lately experienced in Invercargill appears to bave been felt particularly severe thonghout Otago, and at least some parts of Canterbury. The approaching storjn was to some extpnt announced by a singular electric disturbance observed & few days previously at the telegraphic offices throughout the Middle Island. So strong were these indications on Sunday, the 21st ult.. tbat one of the Canterbury papers, alluding to the fact, makes tbe remark — "T)of>s thia forbode a storm or an earthquake ?" The rain set in on the afternoon of "Wednesday tbe 24th ult., and continued with more or less severity until the forenoon of the following day. At Tokomairiro it is described as baying fallen in torrents, during which tbe river rose rapidly. By midday on Thursday considerable portions of the plain were inundated, and tbe main south road, about a mile from the township, was several feet under water. Posts were driven into tbe ground to indicate tbe line of road, and by that means tbe traffic was kept partially open. On Thursday afternoon the flood began to subside, and on thj*j succeeding day farmers and' others were enabled to make a cursory examination of the damage sustained. This is spoken of in very desponding terms. Paddocks which had only been sown a few days previously were found completely sluiced, and tbe surface left much in tbe state of a main thoroughfare cleared of mud. The East Taieri plains fared no better. A newspaper correspondent writes — " The rain conimenced slowly at first, but continued to increase as the night wore on, and up till midday on Thursday came down in torrents. On Friday morning the plain was one vast lake of water. In the afternoon it began to fall, leaving tbe ground in such a dreadful state of saturation that some time must necessarily elapse before farming operations can be proceeded witb. Crops generally will be damaged, and tbe ultimate result will probably be serious to a great many residents on the plaiu." From "Waitahuna we learn tbat "the flood did considerable damage on the Havelock Flat, swamping most of the claims, and giving a few days' work without pay "to tbe miners. The approaches to the bridge were damaged." At Mount Ida it is described as a snowstorm which continued to come dowu heavily throughout tbe night. In the township of Naseby the following morning tbe snow lay fully a foot deep, and tbe mountains in the neighborhood -appeared much more heavily clad than they had done since the preceding winter. At Oamaru tbe storm set in witb a heavy downpour of rain, aud resulted in a flood wbicb inundated the plain on the north side of tbe town. Tbe heavy pressure of water carried away tbe corporation dam, and tbe water escaped in a dark turbid river in the direction of the boating sheds, carrying away tbe landing place and doing other damage. Up to the date of our advices nothing authentic had been received from the outlying districts, still, the fact that a nnrab'T of carcases of dead sheep were observed floating down the creeks makes it pretty evident tbe fury of the storm had been felt beyond the town. The through traffic was cut off by tbe Kakanui river, and a number of other crossings along the road are spoken of as having been in a bighly dangerous state. The Lyttelton Times of the 25th ult. reports that " the incessant downpour of tbe past two days could not otherwise than be expected to cause extensive freshets in all our* rivers. Some of the streams on the West Coast Eoad are but barely passable, and the same may be said of the Northern Rivers. The Hiver Ashley bad overflowed its banks, submerging all tbe land on tbe north side up to tho terrace, and the other rivers are almost equally in flood. The Rangiora main drain had also, as usual, risen above the ground level, and the consequence is that a large tract of land, including a great portion of the Kaiapoi and Rangiora Roads is from one to two feet under water." Throughout Southland the weather bas been extremely variable. High winds, accompanied by sleet and rain, have more or less prevailed for tbe last eight or ten days. It was not, however, until tbe evening of Wednesday last that the full force of tbe storm visited us. Towards the fall of the evening a dense sheet of black cloud gathered in from seaward, and as evening advanced a thunderstorm of unprecedented fury burst over tbe town. The thunder peals were of long rumbling vibration, which caused some of the most substantial buildings to shake to tbeir very foundations. The flashes of lightning were particularly vivid, their intensity being heightened by tbe gloom of the overhanging atmosphere. Rain fell during r the evening, and continued to come down for a considerable time after tbe thunder had ceased. Contrary to expectation, the various mails arrived punctual to time. The rivers towards Lake "Wakatipu, more especially the Mataura and Oreti, are reported high, but still passable for waggons. The crossings between Athol and the Nokomai were in a more dangerous state; and it was understood the traffic in that direction would be pretty nigh if not entirely checked. Saturday was a tolerably fine day, and Sunday was as good as could be wished for at this season of tbe year. Yesterday, however, the weather again set in boisterous, and up to tbe time of going to press there were few signs of improvement.