“A CRICKET SCORE”

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 462, 2 July 1937, Page 5

“A CRICKET SCORE”

FLOOD INVADES THEATRE Record Rainfall ’Press Association —CopjTlgbt. Whangarei, July 1. It was fortunate for Whangarei business men that the tide was out when the Waiarohia Stream, swollen by 6.82 in of rain in the past 24 hours, broke its banks thl & ’ morning and disgorged a muddy torrent of water on the streets and the lower parts of the town. A torrential dowifpour in the early hours, accompanied by a - heavy thunderstorm and a strong wind, caused street-gutters to overflow and low-lying areas, were soon miniature rivers and lakes. Perhaps the greatest sufferers were occupiers of the block of commercial buildings at the corner of Bank and Manse Streets, including the Regent Theatre. The water swept down from the King Street area, via Wrack and Wallace Streets, into Manse Street, and swept on through the back of the theatre, reaching a depth of several feet in places. The flood came out again through the vestibule. Water covered the floor of the Regent confectionery shop, and several other business places in the vicinity were also affected. Flooding in the main business area was not nearly so extensive as when the memorable flood occurred in February, 1936, but it is estimated that had the tide been full thousands of pounds’ worth of damage would have been done. Whangarei’s rainfall over the past nine days reads like a cricket score, the to’tlal being 16.24 in. This brings the total for June to 18.4 in, a record for the past 15 years. The average monthly rainfall is 6.95 in and 'the previous wettest June was in 1928, 'When the fall was 12.67 in. For the first six months of this year 51.76 in. of rain Jias fallen, as against the average annual fall of 62.81 in.