P. & T. SERVICES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 30 June 1942, Page 4

P. & T. SERVICES

FACILITIES AT MASTERTON POST OFFICE PUBLIC ARRANGEMENTS BEING REORGANISED. REOPENING OF MAIN COUNTERS ON THURSDAY. Excellent progress is being made at the Masterton Post Office in reorganising the facilities for handling public business. Nev/ entrances are being provided for the public and staff. It is hoped to reopen the main offices on Thursday morning. i A new stairway has been erected to give access to the first floor from the right-of-way entrance on the south side of the Post Office. This will be opened as soon as debris is cleared away. A new entrance is also to be made into the main vestibule from Lincoln Road, giving access to the post and telegraph counter. This entrance will be protected by a barricade. Direct access is also being provided between the postal and telegraph section and the Savings Bank and Money Order branch. A tunnel from the roadway will give the public protection to the Queen Street entrance of the Savings Bank section. The accommodation for this branch has been considerably enlarged by the addition of the accountant’s room to the public vestibule. This will greatly relieve the congestion that has been apparent in this section of the Post Office in the past. Insofar as the public is concerned the arrangements for the conduct of business will be the same as before the earthquake, that is to say, the counters in both the Money Order and Savings Bank and the postal branches will again be brought into use on Thursday morning at 9 o’clock. The tower is to be demolished piece by piece, as the steel reinforcing prevents any other procedure. It is hoped to complete this task in about ten days’ time.

MEETING EMERGENCY ARRANGEMENTS AFTER SHAKE. FINE WORK BY P. & T. STAFF. Mr M. M. Simpson, Postmaster, was quickly on the scene on the night of the earthquake, with Messrs W. L. Butler, senior mechanician, and E. J. Burke, supervisor of the telegraph branch, in an endeavour to restore telegraph and telephone communications. When it was found that all main lines north and south of Masterton had been put out of action use was made of one of the Railways Department’s circuits which had been specially connected with the Masterton Post Office for such an emergency and communication was thus established with Wellington, the Director General of the Department being informed of what had happened. Coincidently with this the emergency radio was brought into use and several messages were dispatched. For a time the post office was in darkness and special tribute must be paid to the Wairarapa Power Board employees for restoring light and power within a short space of time. The supply of both light and power was most important, that of power the more so because of the need for electricity for charging the telephone exchange and the telegraph batteries. COMMUNICATION RE-ESTAB-LISHED. Communication was established by telegraph with Wellington at 1 p.m. on Thursday, the day after the earthquake and the Creed machine was in use at 2 p.m. Prior to this, a number of outward telegrams were despatched by service car to Wellington and two round trips were made by Air Force plane from Wellington to Masterton and back, carrying telegraph traffic both ways. Considerable assistance was given by Army Signals and mobile teleprinter and mobile radio units also arrived. It was not necessary to use the mobile radio unit but the mobile teleprinter handled a considerable amount of traffic.

Consequent upon the interruption of the rail -services there was a large accumulation at other offices of mail matter for the Wairarapa. A heavy mail for the local .office came to hand on Friday and also on Saturday. On each of those days valuable assistance was given by former P. and T. officers now in the Army. STAFF’S FINE SERVICE. All members of the staff responded splendidly to the demands made upon them by the calamity and they remained cheerful through long hours of duty and have done everything possible to restore services to normal, Mr Simpson states. Some officers rendered meritorious service and very valuable assistance has been rendered by Army Signals and the Divisional Signallers, also by other branches of the forces who have assisted in many ways, notably by manning of the toll board, the Creed machine and the despatch and delivery of telegraph traffic. The major portion of the delivery of telegrams has been carried out by Army personnel working in conjunction with the Department’s officers, Boy Scouts and College students. For a time Masterton was transmitting for other stations in the Wairarapa and traffic was despatched and received from those stations by means of Army despatch riders. The Prime Minister, Mr Fraser, who visited Masterton on Thursday, expressed his appreciation of the work that was being carried out and of the arrangements made to deal with the emergency.