THE OMOANA CLOUDBURST.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 January 1922, Page 4

THE OMOANA CLOUDBURST.

£5OOO TO £BOOO TO REPAIR THE ROADS. It is yet difficult to ascertain details of the devastation caused in the Ob»jana district by the recent cloudburst (savs the Eltham Argus). It is stated that at least 25 per cent, of the grazing land has been put out of commission, and many declare this a. very modest estimate. The countryside *s nothing but a succession of slips, and as one visitor to the district declared, there appeared to be no grazing tfrt, that on the hillsides having slipped down into the valleys and that in the valleys being covered by the slips. The river flats are covered with silt of varying depth, the deposit having completely covered the best grass paddocks. Speaking to a Star reporter, Mr. Belcher said that the county engineer had estimated that it would cost somewhere between £5060 and £BOOO to repair the main roads alone, and the cost of repairing all the roads in the devastated area would not be over-estimated at £20,000. Seeing that the riding * debit balance of £5OOO, the necessity for Government assistance was obvious.