CO129-589-9 Government House- damage caused by construction of underground Air Raid shelter tunnels. For extracted photographs.... 1-4-1941 - 1-11-1941 — Page 13

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Hou, D. P. V.,

At about 8.20 p.m. 01 Tuesday the 3rd Juno I received

a telephone message from Capt. Batty Smith rogarding damage at

Government Houso,

I immediately proceeded to the site and found that

the two central brick columis at ground floor level on either side

of the steps loading to the garden, had collapsed and that the granite litle spausing the opening had fallen down, ozposing the wider face of the brick wall over.

The wall which carried a cantilevered balcony and

alse two similar columis over at first floor Lovol in addition to a portion of the verandah reef, was suspended botwoan the free ends of the granite lintles on either side.

Bach of these lintlos, having lost the direct support

of the brick columis at their outer ouds ind sagged down on the single raking shores which had previously been created for such an evon tu ality.

The accontrie strous time sot up in the next two column on either side of the centre had enused total fracture of the brickwork of which they were construotod and the whole weight that they lnd supported was transferred to the twin raking shores previously erected on each side of these columis.

Workson and additional scaffolding wore brought to

the site but owing to the danger of a possible furtiar fall of masonry it was decided to wait until tho morning, before additional shores were groated.

There was no further fall of masonry during the night and on the following morning additional shering ruming the whole length of the verandah was commenced.

The brickwork of which the verandah colunið are

auki.

constructed is of vory poor quality and the eccentric stresses caused by the settlement of the building have caused sovore fractures to

our in themL,

It is therefore recomandod that the entire first

floor voraidali whiali omul now serve no useful structural purpose should