STORMS IN PROVINCE

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 420, 31 July 1928, Page 13

STORMS IN PROVINCE

HEAVY RAIN AND FLOODS WALL BLOWN DOWN AT PAEROA (Frutn Our Oicn Correspondents.) COROMANDEL, Monday. Heavy rain, accompanied by a strong north-easterly gale, has fallen here since Saturday. A motor-bus was held up at the Manaia Bridge for some hours last night and to-day there is 4ft of water covering the northern approach to the bridge. Two slips on the Coast Read also gave a returning motor-bus party some trouble. The bridge over the Waiau Creek, about two miles south of Coromandel, is being subjected to considerable strain, and the approaches have been weakened. A cattle sale scheduled for to-day had to be postponed. The Karaka Creek ■ flowing through the township is running bank high, and flat land is flooded in many places. COLLAPSE OF GARAGE At Paeroa on Sunday morning the walls of a motor garage which is being erected in the main street by Mr. E. S. Thomas, of the Waihi-Auckland service cars, completely gave way and fell on the footpath. They were constructed of reinforced concrete. Most of the flood water on the lowlying farms has disappeared, and many of the farm houses which were flood'll have been cleared of the silt left by the river water. HIGHWAY UNDER WATER Rain, driven by a south-easterly gale, ceased about midnight at Thames, but set in again at 9 a.m. on Monday. A fall of l.lSin was recorded at Thames for the 48 hours ended at 10 a.m. Although the gale raged throughout the Thames Valley yesterday at Te Aroha, Paeroa and Thames, £he rainfall has been comparatively light, and flood waters continue to subside rapidly at all points, particularly between Paeroa and Tirohia. There was a foot of water covering three-quarters of a mile of the Paeroa-Te Aroha main highway this morning, but it did not prevent vehicular traffic. The weather to-night is squally and unsettled. STORM AT DARGAVILLE A severe electrical storm passed over Dargaville between 9 and 10 a.m. on Sunday. Rain set in on c Saturday evening and continued all night, terminating with the electrical disturbance. ROADS TO THE NORTH STILL DANGEROUS Although the flood waters have fallen the Auckland Automobile Association does not advise motorists to try to get through to the North by road. The Waitakere Road is in a very bad condition. Cars have been able to get through to Huapai but after that the road this morning was almost impassable. The main road is still flooded at Waimauku this morning, but the water was falling rapidly. Workmen have cleared the *lip at Tunnel Hill, but at is dangerous to trv to get through. It is expected that the roads will be clear to-morrow, providing that no more rain falls.