1936 flood
EAST COAST DISTRICTS SUFFER SEVERELY.
MUCH DAMAGE AT TINUI.
"I have never seen such a flood," said a resident of Tinui last night, who stated that, the valley was one sea of water, which reached right up to the Post Office.
A number of houses were completely flooded out, the police station and constable's residence having several feet of water in them, with furnishings floating about.
A new house just completed for the Castlepoint County Council and occupied only a week ago was invaded by flood water to a depth of several feet, while another house under construction had the roof blown off.
Messrs. Fly & Young's garage was blown down and Mr. McIsaac's blacksmith's shop demolished by the wind.
Two cars were abandoned in the middle of the road, with the water reaching to the top of the hoods.
"I saw a woman and men swimming in the streets, the water being neck-deep," said an old resident, "while cattle, sheep and poultry were seen floating past."
The flood in the Whareama and Whakataki valleys was very severe, being the worst experienced for many years and many houses had to be vacated.
The Tinui-Castlepoint Road is blocked, while there is also a blockage on the Mangapakeha Hill. It is not expected that the road between Tinui and Castlepoint will be open for a day or two.
The gale in this district was reported to be particularly severe.
February 1936 North Island Ex-tropical Cyclone
On 1 February 1936 the North Island was hit by a an ex-tropical cyclone which caused widespread wind damage and flooding.
NIWA reports that at Tinui, water from the Whareama River flooded buildings. All houses on the flat were invaded by water, as well as the police station and residence.
The water reached a depth of 50 cm in the hotel, and 1 m deep in some houses. (That doesn't tell us how deep the water was outside as the level was measured within the buildings, rather than from the underlying ground upwards.)
At Castlepoint the sea washed away sand hills and invaded houses 100 m inland.
February 1936 North Island Ex-tropical Cyclone ( 1936-02-01 )
EFFECTS OF GALE
CASTLEPOINT SWEPT
HOLIDAYMAKERS MAROONED
The fierce gale and heavy rain on Sunday were more destructive in the Castlepoint and Tinui districts, than the damage in Masterton and the road from Tinui to Castlepoint is blocked in several places.
Some twenty Masterton families are marooned at Castlepoint beach.
After walking from Castlepoint to Tinui, a member of one party, who returned to Masterton yesterday afternoon, related a story of experiences at Castlepoint on Sunday.
Mountainous seas pounded the foreshore throughout the day, the waves washing away sand hills and invading houses over a hundred yards from the beach. At times Castlepoint lighthouse could not be seen as spray broke over it.
A small stream that runs across the beach to the sea became swollen that it cut off access to families camping at one end of the beach. There was surprisingly little damage done at Castlepoint by the wind, but at Whakataki the hall was blown down..
With their food supplies cut off the campers had to draw on Castlepoint station for meat, while the cook there baked bread nearly all Sunday night.
The road from Castlepoint to Tinui is completely blocked by slips and washouts and it is estimated that it will be at least three weeks before it will be open for vehicular traffic.
Fortunately there is a fairly good track across country by which food and other supplies may be taken by pack horses to the campers at Castlepoint.
It took three men five hours to walk the fourteen miles from Castlepoint to Tinui yesterday.
About forty feet of the southern approach to the concrete bridge spanning the Whakatahi stream has been carried away, while there are no less than fourteen slips, one of very large dimensions, on the Whakataki Hill.
The road between Castlepoint and Tinui was described last night as being in a terrible state, wash-outs and slips appearing every chain or so. The ford near the Whakataki bridge has been washed completely away.
Scores of dead sheep were seen along the road between Castlepoint and Tinui.
From Tinui to Masterton the road did not suffer much damage, there being only two slips of any size.
On account of the blocking of the Tinui-Castlepoint Road Messrs. Fly and Young have cancelled the 7.15 a.m. Castlepoint-Masterton and 3 p.m. Masterton-Castlepoint service until further notice.
The 8 a.m. car from Masterton will run as far as Tinui, returning from Tinui at 1 p.m.
No goods can be taken past Tinui at present.
Yesterday Mr. Savage was able to proceed by car as far as Racecourse Hill, four miles from Tinui, the road further on being blocked by slips, but these will be cleared by this morning and it will then be possible to reach Tinui.
