HORAHORA CLEAN-UP

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 254, 17 January 1928, Page 13

HORAHORA CLEAN-UP

SIX FEET OF DEBRIS PREVENTATIVE APPLIANCES (From Our Own Correspondent) MAT AM AT A, To-day. On Sunday when the Horahora power station was shut down for the cleaning of the screens, the operations were viewed by several hundreds of spectators, who came and went all day. Those in charge seemed satisfied with the progress for the time being, but, as Mr. Medistrict engineer, said to a SUN representative, “we cannot tell what the river is going to bring down next week." Those who happen to possess some knowledge ol ? the ways of the Waikato River will say, most emphaticalJv, Just so, and maybe ‘next, year’ would be quite as relevant as ‘next week.’ ” w i e fact is that while the Public Works Department is doing its best to mitigate the conditions, yet it had never expected to be required to cope with such an invasion of debris. GEAR INEFFECTIVE The appliances are for the most part of a crude description, adequate no doubt for normal conditions, but ineffectual when dealing with the wrath of an aroused Waikato. On Saturday, when two of the smaller turbines were examined, it was found that the vanes were covered in two feet of pumice boulders and pumiceous detritus, completely blocking the ingress of water. When the headrace was closed on Sunday morning a solid six feet of silt was disclosed against the screens. This had all to be agitated to let the stream wash it through oift of the way. CHOKED WATER MAIMS Incidentally, the pumice-laden water i has caused the blockage of the drinking water supply pipes in the “village, * water having now to be carted from a tributary stream. It will be necessary to take up, clean and re-lay all these pipes.