Gisborne Flood: 1948

In Major Joan Hutson’s book titled As for me and my House: A Salute to Early Gisborne Salvation Army Families 1886 to 1952, published by Flag Publications in 2004, she shares an account of a flood affecting Hawke’s Bay that was recorded in the Gisborne Corps History Book. Below is an abridged version of events.

May [1948]: Gisborne’s most disastrous flood occurred. Major Elliot [then Gisborne Corps officer] was appointed Chairman of the Flood Relief Committee.

The town itself of 18,000 people sat squarely on a network of rivers and creeks. Each one overflowed its banks, threatening nearby houses.

Friday was a day of rescues, many difficult and dangerous as the waters continued to rise and people, especially country people, were forced to evacuate their homes. All day the community, including council workers, the police, sea scouts and ex-naval men, worked desperately to save lives. A series of slips had now closed off the main railway line south through to Wairoa, and the Waioeka Gorge was impassable. The airport and its approaches were underwater. Gisborne was completely isolated.

A gum-booted and oil-skinned figure with an Army cap was visible everywhere. In his fifteen or so months in Gisborne, Major Ernest Elliot had become a familiar figure to the town’s civic authorities and businesspeople. He conferred with the mayor, offering the Army’s facilities and was asked to form a relief committee. Its headquarters would be at The Salvation Army Citadel in the middle of Gisborne’s main shopping area.

Major Elliot, with the help of his Corps Sergeant Major and bandmaster, divided the bandsmen and male soldiers into rescue teams. His wife, Anne, and her home league secretary and their helpers set about making the two halls ready to receive the wet and miserable evacuees. Many of these had left their flooded homes without food and without dry bedding or a change of clothes.

Almost before the first evacuees arrived, The Salvation Army halls were filling up with incoming goods, including food, clothing, mattresses and blankets. Receiving them was an army of willing helpers as well as the already alerted Salvationists.

Welfare was The Salvation Army’s primary responsibility. Clothes had to be sorted, amongst them much needed blankets, jerseys and gloves, scarves and woolly hats. The goods that poured in threatened to smother the workers and carton after carton of clothing was stacked until they reached the ceiling.

Sunday proved to be another miserable wet day with winds gusting. The tidal rivers, especially at high tides, still threatened the bridges and the riverside properties. The whole corps was in rescue mode. And still it rained. What to do about the Sunday meetings? They stopped for half an hour. The bandsmen came in from their rescue work, the home leaguers paused in their sorting of clothes, everything was pushed back, and the proverbial Army cuppa tea was served. With great aplomb, Major Elliot led a rousing meeting.

Bandsmen, young and old, returned to the stricken areas and worked all day shovelling mud and distributing such necessities as were available. And still it rained.

By Monday morning, the rescue workers were desperate for dry clothing. Wading waist deep in water rescuing families and animals had also put paid to their footwear. It was obvious that more help was needed. A phone call from Major Elliot to Prime Minister Peter Fraser saw a consignment of 1000 suits of battledress, 1000 pairs of boots and underwear in proportion were despatched to Gisborne.

Slowly the rain eased off. The flood had inundated 21,000 acres of the 39,000 acres of flat land between Kaitaratahi and the sea. Two hundred cattle and 16,000 sheep had died.