Balclutha Road Bridge

Transcription

[Narrator] As you cross over Balclutha's historic bowstring arch bridge you are also crossing the South Island's longest river, the mighty Clutha. Clutha is a gaelic form of the Scottish river the Clyde, so Balclutha means town on the Clyde. Balclutha is close to the mouth of the river, but it rises over 300 kilometres away in the mountains and lakes of western Otago, notably lakes Wānaka, Hāwea and Wakatipu. Although the Clutha is sixteen kilometres shorter than the Waikato River in the North Island it carries twice the volume of water. Māori used the river to transport greenstone or pounamu, from the west of the South Island, as well as large moa birds which roamed inland. The first European to travel the Clutha was a farmer, Nathaneael Chalmers. In 1853 persuaded the Māori local chief to take him into the interior of the island by land in return for a three-legged iron pot. He became the first white man to see the inner lakes; but then fell ill from diarrhoea. The quickest way back was by water, so the Māori he was with built a flax raft and they sped back downstream through the Cromwell Gorge. [Chalmers -- actor's voice] 'I shall never forget the race through the gorge... my heart was literally in my mouth, but those two old men seemed to care nothing for the current.' [Narrator] Crossing the Clutha with its fierce currents was a challenge. But the easiest place to cross was at Balclutha. In 1852 a ferry service began there. At that stage the place was simply known as 'The Ferry'. The opening of the goldfields brought new settlers to the area so in 1868 the first bridge was built. It did not last long. The winter of 1878 was a tough one with large snowfalls. Heavy rains combined with a spring thaw creating a huge flood. Along way upstream the Bannockburn bridge, on the Kawerau river a tributary of the Clutha, was swept away: its wreckage destroyed the Clyde Bridge on the Clutha, this in turn was swept down and ruined the Roxburgh bridge. Further downstream the Beaumont bridge was washed away and this then destroyed the Balclutha bridge. At Balclutha a wooden truss bridge was erected but by the 1920s it had to restrict loads to 150 sheep or five head of cattle. The elegant concrete bowstring bridge that you see today was completed in 1935. Its opening was so important to the local community that it was celebrated with four days of processions, concerts, sports, a treasure hunt and an air pageant. Although the swirling currents of the Clutha were a major obstacle to settlers, the river has also brought wealth. For many years its waters were dredged for gold, and in 1956 they were harnessed to provide power at the large Roxburgh hydro-electric station. This was followed in 1990 by an even larger station at Clyde. However, even in modern times you cannot underestimate the power of the mighty Clutha. In October 1978, within one day of the 100th anniversary the 1878 floods, there was another major flood which killed thousands of stock and forced many people to evacuate their homes.