EXTRAORDINARY LANDSLIP.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 458, 29 March 1890, Page 4

EXTRAORDINARY LANDSLIP.

An extraordinary flood occurred at Queensland. Many of the wharves on the river were submerged, and large tracts of low-lying land were under water. Most extraordinary landslips resulted from the heavy rains. At Rosewood Scrub and other farming centres, cracks and fissures many feet in depth have opened in all directions, and large areas of land have moved bodily. An elderly German farmer named Gadisehke was on Monday last sitting inside his house with his family, the rain outside falling in torrents, while the wind blew with the force of a gale. Suddenly a report like that of a hundred-ton gun startled the family, and threw' them into consternation. This report was' followed by a second, and then a dull rumbling noise like thunder; but they knew the sound came from underground, and the house began to rock in all directions. Gadisehke ran to the door just in time to see his barn totter and fall to the ground. He was terrified. He saw the ground cracking in all places, and felt it moving. A third horrible report taking place, he rushed inside again, determined at all hazards to take his family, who were all screaming with fear, to some place of safety. The housewasstillshakingand the rambling continued. The family fled to the door, but seeing that great gaps were continually appearing in the moving ground, they were afraid to venture from the house lest they should step into one ot the fissures and disappear. A galvanised iron tank full of water alongside the house was thrown off the stand, and, rolling down the hill, crashed into the cow-house. Simultaneous with another deafening report, Gadisehke saw his cow-house become a wreck. The rumbling continued and the giound moved for two and a half hours, not stopping till 4.30 in the afternoon, loud reports going off at intervals during the whole time. The rain continued to fall in blinding sheets the whole time. The poor old man removed his terrified family to eomo friend’s, then himself went back to see what he could save. His land in this part, extending over 12 acres, is entirely destroyed, and within this area were the whole of the unfortunate old fellow’s buildings, and these are hopelessly wrecked. Back of his farm another large area extending over eight or ten acres has moved, and this was covered with a nice crop of corn. In the fruit garden cracks and fissures can be seen 12ft to 20ft deep. The whole of the man’s property is hopelessly destroyed. Other farms have suffered in a similar manner. The damage to property in Brisbane alone is estimated at £IOO,OOO. The gasworks were submerged, and Lbe city was in total darkness for two nights. The drowning cases so far are—John Dalgleish,formerly traffic inspector ; Miss Brown ? daughter of the landlord of the Plough Inn, South Brisbape ; Thos. Murray, labourer ; also a man, name unknown, who was a drayman With Walcott Brothers, grocers, South Brisbane.