The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-02-22
STORM ON
MAUI.
Damage Done by
| Recent Big
Roma.
THIRTY INCHES OF
! RAIN IN 10 DAYS
Boy Swept Over Precipice 60
Feet High but Escapes
Unhurt.
Especial Correspondence


WAILUKU, Maui, Feb. 16.-The
great kona which began on the 4th
came to an end on the 14th by the wind
changing to the regular trades. The
storm center seemed to have been in
the Kula section, for at Erehwon Cattle
Station, at 1000 feet elevation, the rain
gauge measured 1920 inches in the ten
days of storm, a most surprising rec
ord. The entire potato crop recently
planted has been washed away and the
price of potatoes, now quoted at 1920
per bag, will rise Still higher. The
land in many places is now covered
with huge rocks, some SO large that it
takes several men to move them and
others four or five feet in diameter.
Every gulch has been running with wa
| ter and four great holloWs have been
washed out of the Kula Government
road At Wagner's Gulch a cut twenty
| feet wide was made by the freshet and
the thoroughfare is impossible. A Jap
anese farmer relates how the flood spir-
| tied away wagon load of ripe corn
which he had piled up near his dwell
ing.
At Kihei it rained every day during
the storm and they had rainfall near
" equal to that of Kula. Several hum
dred dollars of damage was done to the
plantation.
At Puuomalei, Makawao, 1000 feet
elevation, the rain record was 1i.2s
inches for the ten days. But even this
rainfall made gulches run furiously
:. which had been dry for years.
During Wednesday, the 18th, while
a native boy in the employ of Halea-
kala ranch was driving in the milking
stock he attempted to pass through
stream in little valley in the rear OF
the managers residence. He was i'm
mediately swept off his feet and Owe
precipice sixty feet in height. For
tunately for him he fell into deel
pool of water, from which he emerged
without injury. At Alelele CROSSING
Deputy Sheriff Sam Kalama and hi
horse were swept by the swollen stream
over a little pail ten or fifteen fee
high. The water was over his horse
back but by good luck both escape
without injury.
Wednesday, the 18th. was the mos
memora BILE day of the storm. The rain
fall on Kula during the twenty-fou
hours was $40 inches; at Puuomale
Makawao, $50 inches, and at Hama
kuapoko, 6 inches. But what made tn
day especially remarkable was tn
electric storm. beginning at 3 a. m. an
continuing until $3.50 a. m. Such
fierce and incessant display of light
ming has rarely ever been witnessed
! For a half hour the flashes continue
} with but one or two seconds 1nterVa
and the thunder rolled necessarily.
was appalling. One began to think, Sc
why should the spirit of mortal [
proud?" While every now and then
= flash was especially vivid, still the elet
trio discharges were not so great E
. during summer storms of the Ne
3 England states or on the Wester
plains. But what made the event
"A thrilling one was the rapidity of II
flashes The darkness of the sky ar
u earth was illuminated continuously fl
thirty minutes with waves of electr
light.
The central station at Paia of II
Maui Telephone Company was strut
by the electric fluid and fourteen EMU
ciators We're burned out.
During the 7th. at Hama, the centr
office was struck by lightning and 6
, the Inch were NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
the lines We're cut off.
Z
J. recent freshet is greater than that co
!. cred by water during the Novemb
kona. No trains have run between *
Oh hului and Paia during the week.
The Maalaea-W ailuku road has al
. been badly washed out The Honolu
mail landed at Maalaea last Tuesd
night did not reach Wakawao till F.
day. There was such a great fresh
between Maalaea and Waikiki tn
the carriages We're afraid to cross a
so the mail did not reach Waikiki un
Wednesday afternoon. The train I
running between Waikiki and Kahul
the mail was sent on horses and
some mistake was not sent on to Pa
till Friday.
The Kahului Railroad Company ces
ed running trains between Paia a
KahuIui on Monday and between K