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GALE AND FIRE.
Devastation in New South
Wales.
A SCORCHING westerly gale which
swept from the inland districts to
the coast to-day wrought havoc in
many areas. Many houses were unroofed
in the suburbs. There were numerous
bushfires, one having disastrous conse
quences. Many reports are to hand of
minor damage by the wind. A message
from Woy Woy, the popular watering
place north of Sydney, states that
a fire broke out early in the day
enveloped 30 week-end cottages, all of
which were destroyed. The damage is
estimated at £20,000.
The telegraph and telephone trunk
lines were seriously interrupted as a
result of the gale. In the city the
weather conditions to-day were the
most unpleasant experienced for many
years. Great volumes of dust from the
inland districts, and smoke from exten
sive bush flies, produced a thick yellow
haze making visibility poor, and the
conditions even more unpleasant.
Shortly before 2 o'clock this afternoon
the wind reached a velocity of 88
miles an hour. Almost at the same
hour the temperature rose to 98deg.,
a most unusual reading for October.
The barometer reading was 29.100. A
number of plate glass windows were
broken in the city by the force of the
wind.
The shipping men on the harbour
had an anxious time. When the storm
reached its maximum severity the
coastal steamer Pulganbar broke away
from its moorings at Rozelle and
dragged her anchors. She was safely
re-moored. The oil lighter at the
Cockatoo Dockyard was swept away,
former position
Fires in Every Direction.
RUSH fires broke out in every direc-
ion in the Blue Mountains, and the
flames were carried hundreds of yards
at a time. Residents had an anxious
time saving their homes. Many motor
ists had narrow escapes. Railway
fences and telegraph poles caught
alight. A sensational accident occur
red at Hazelbrook. A fierce fire swept
up from a gully. The road was en
tirely obscured in dense smoke for
about a quarter of a mile. Motorists
were compelled to make a dash through
the smoke area, and suddenly there
was a resounding crash—two cars had
come into a head-on collision. They
were considerably damaged, and the
occupants were more or less hurt.
A peculiar accident happened to Wil
liam Williams, a poultry farmer, of
Rydalmere, during the gale. He was
repairing the roof of a shed, when a
particularly violent squall loosened the
structure and lifted it into the air.
Williams clung to the roof and was
carried a distance of 25 to 30 yards.
When the structure hit the ground it
turned completely over, pinning the
unfortunate man beneath. He was
taken to hospital suffering from ex
tensive injuries.
SYDNEY, October 8.
It is almost impossible to estimate
the Carnage done by the gale and fires
on Sunday. From all parts of the
State losses are reported. The de
struction of the Cumberland Paper
Mills at Lane Cove, Sydney, was alone
a great disaster. The damage done
by this fire, which consumed the
mills' stacks of timber, a chemical
store, and other buildings, over an
area of 10 acres, is estimated at
£400.000
Hundreds of cottages, sheds, and
other structures have suffered damage
by the wind in every suburb. There
are damaged roofs and other signs of
the storm's passage along the coast
Between Sydney and Newcastle to-day
the smoke of the fires was still so
thick that shipping was hampered by
the poor visibility. Many fires were
burning in the hills, but as the wind
had dropped to a breeze there was
no further danger of damage to pro
perty.
Dislocation of Communications.
THE dislocation of the telephone and
telegraph services was the worst ex
perienced in New South Wales. All
over the State lines were damaged, and
many towns were cut off. Newcastle
to-day was almost without telephone
and telegraph services from the South
and North, and in the afternoon only
two lines from Sydney were in work
ing order. Gangs of men began work
at 5 o'clock this morning to repair
the damaged lines. At that time
Brisbane, Newcastle, and many of the
towns in the North were cut off from
Sydney. In the West and South con
ditions were almost as bad. Between
Deniliquin and Cobargo 126 poles were
blown down or burnt. The town of
Parkes, in the Western district, re
ports that the damage done there is
about £5000. Many business places
were damaged.
Damage in the Country.
NEWCASTLE, October 8.
MANY volunteers worked all to-night
to save the South Pacific colliery at
Fassifern from a fire which was
stopped just in time at Charlstown.
Three cottages were burnt, and thou
sands of acres of grass and scrub were
destroyed. A fire threatened the ex
plosive store at Merewether and volun
teers worked desperately to keep the
flames off. They succeeded after a
long struggle. In the Maitland district,
an extensive fire is still burning on
Mount George.
SYDNEY, October 8.
Eight railway locomotives were
buried beneath the debris when a
locomotive shed at Wallerawang was
blown down by the gale. A gang of
ment was set to work at once to re
cover the engines. The roof of the
Marsden Girls' College, at Bathurst
was carried away, and several mem
bers of the staff received slight in
juries. Much damage to crops is re-
ported in the Trundle district, where
haystacks were destroyed by fire. In
some places sheaves of hay were blown
about like feathers. Gardens at Dubbo
suffered severely, and 3000 acres of
grass was burnt. The town was en
veloped in dust all day on Sunday.
Five houses were burnt at Woodford.
Similar reports are coming in from all
parts of the State.
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