Local and General
At the Wainui-o-mata waterworks the recent rainfall was the heaviest experienced since 1895. From Tuesday night to Sunday morning the rain guage recorded 21¼ in. For the twenty-four hours between 9 a.m. on Wednesday and 9 a.m. on Thursday 9 1-5in fell. The river was swollen to many times its usual size, and the outlet from the dam was insufficient to cope with it. By 5.30 on Thursday morning the water had risen to the top of the wall, and made an outlet for itself at the western corner. The overflow is said to have been a sight that would compare very favourably with the Huka Falls. Several slips occurred, one, about half a mile below the dam, bringing down a huge log about 40ft long and 5ft in diameter, which struck the road about a foot from the pipes, completely blocking it for vehicular traffic. At the “Old Rustic Bridge” above the dam, a favourite view for photographers, the river was within a few inches of the log, and washed it down. During the eighteen days of this month a fall of 8.90in of rain was recorded at the Colonial Observatory (Wellington). The average rainfall for the whole month of October is 3.93in.
Tags: Newspaper Waterworks
