Refugees’ Story Like Grotesque Nightmare

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 693, 19 June 1929, Page 1

Refugees’ Story Like Grotesque Nightmare

HILLS MELT INTO V ALLEYS TOWN A HEAP OF WRECKAGE Press Association NELSON, Today. All refugees speak of the terrible experiences through which they passed, and when all they have to tell is put together the story seems like the realisation of some grotesque and awful nightmare, an occurrence quite unparalleled in the living history of New Zealand. '{ho earthquake in ell its violence burst upon Murchison with great suddenness, and within a few moments the whole landscape seemed to rock and heave. landslides occurred, and, before the horrified eyes of the townspeople, who had rushed from their dancing buildings, two hills absolutely melted away to their foundations. Where unbroken ridges had stood, gullies now appeared, and it seemed as if the whole of the surrounding countryside would tumble down in ruin. The upheaval was accompanied by a crashing roar, punctuated by loud explosions, apparently within the hills. Within a few minutes every building in Murchison was rendered uninhabitable, and although the first sreat violence of the shock soon wore uff, the movement of the ground was still so severe that it was impossible to walk easily upon it. Shocks of greater or less severity continued during the remainder of Monday, all that night, and ail Tuesday, and right up to the time when the majority of the people left for N’elson at noon. Detonation after detonation presaged each sharper movement of the earth.

When the inhabitants had time to take stock of their surroundings, it vas soon found that six people in the ueighbourhood had been killed by landslides, numbers that are being swelled as news from surrounding villages is slowly received. Huge falls of earth, too, had blocked the Buller and Matakitaki Rivers, which immediately began to back up behind these earthquakethade dams. A huge volume of water has thus backed up in Matakitaki, and it is feared that, if the waters break away suddenly, they will make a clean sweep of the wrecked township. . Ia one refugee’s opinion everything to Murchison will have to be rebuilt. The township has been left without a tty water, light or power. The electric powerhouse is wrecked and the Seuerator smashed. NIGHT OF TERROR “Lying on the wet ground and feeling the earth moving underneath, was an experience not to be forgotten,” says a refugee. “I felt that every explosion as it came would burst up with terrific force from under my body.

“Toward morning, however, we began to appreciate that, while explosions still occurred, the actual shock was less severe. At odd times the explosions seemed to cease for ten minutes or so. Then we got a very severe shake in the morning. We were more reconciled to the ’quake and explosions, except the violent ones, and began to risk going into the houses and getting requisites which were not thought of the day before. “The 10.80 explosion on Monday morning took place in the hills on the western bank of the Matakitaki River, about three and a-half miles from Murchison. This explosion blew the whole hillside across the valiey, blocking the river and extending to the range of hills on the eastern bank, a distance of over half a mile, and damming the Matakitaki River with debris to a width of three-quar-ters of a mile and to a depth of well over 100 ft. You can imagine how good we thought it was, wondering whether it was metal or water which would get us first. “A Nelson mart who was in Murchison all through the earthquake and Monday night, said the whole landscape was altered there. He referred to the blockage of the Matakitaki River, and said the danger of a flood was one of the main reasons why people finally decided to come away to Nelson. A few men have remained in the stricken town and will not leave unless absolutely forced to do so. According to the Nelson man. everyone in Murchison behaved splendidly throughout the ordeal. THE DEATH ROLL

The known death roll of j j the earthquake is as follows: I j C. Morel, Matataki Vai- | j ley, Murchison. | Mrs. S. Busch, Matataki | | Valley, Murchison. Miss Busch, Matataki Vai- j j j ley, Murchison. Ron Busch, Matataki Vall j ley, Murchison. j Mrs. ■ Walter Holman, ( ' Lower Marania. Child Holman, Lower | Marania. Mrs. Gibson, Marania Vai- ; ley. Master Gibson, Marania i 1 Valley. j Leo. Westbrook, Marania [ Valley. Miss Ferguson, Marania Valley. William Chamley, Cardiff Bridge Mine. Robert McAllister, Glas- ( oow Mine. A. D. Stubbs, Golden Bay Cement Works. ] TARAKOHE VICTIM SOUTH AFRICAN VETERAN Press Association WELLINGTON. Today. Ml-. Arthur Douglas Stubbs, the third | engineer of the Golden Bay Cement 1 Works, who was a victim of the earth- ! quake at Tarakohe, came from Welli in-ton. He served in the South AfnI call War with the second contingent.