The Wellington Wind
WHAT is it like living in the windiest city in the world?
This iconic statue, called “Solace in the Wind,” celebrates the reconciliation, grit, and acceptance Wellingtonians have with the daily struggle of living in the windiest city in the world.
Wellington is so windy that for 100 days of the year, it experiences storm-grade winds, just two points below hurricane level.
On most days, Wellingtonians endure 25 km/hour winds!
The statue is a bit flattering; the reality of Wellingtonians caught in the wind is considerably less stoic.
These photos, taken from Wellington newspapers over the years, paint a more honest picture...
The strongest winds ever recorded reached 275 kilometers per hour in 1968. (1) These winds caused havoc to the city, uprooting trees, destroying houses and ultimately claiming lives. It was this storm which caused New Zealand's worst modern maritime tragedy; the sinking of the Wahine, in which 51 people died. (2)
Here is some images of the damage.
Wellington's wind is caused by it's position between the Taurarua and Malborough mountain ranges. Wellington is centered in the middle of this small 22 km gap, which acts a a funnel for wind. Its a similar process to how a river quickens as it passes through a narrowed gorge.
In 1888 the the wind was so strong that it whipped a 34 tonne train heading from Masterton to Wellington off its tracks. Luckily, no one on board was injured (3).
One early settler wasn't as lucky.
In 1843, Mary Cottell was tragically killed after a heavy gust of wind carried a canoe off the beach towards her (4). She had been part of the new wave of European immigration to Wellington and had only been been living in the city for three years.
The incident occurred where Manners Street is today, in what was once a sprawling beach front, shown in these paintings by Charles Heaphy in 1841.
The incident was downplayed in the newspapers of the time so as to not discourage further immigration to Wellington. (5)
The Wellington wind has also made an impact on the history of NZ's discovery.
It was the wind which prevented the first European discover of New Zealand Abel Tasman from entering Wellington harbor in 1642.
Due to a wild storm Abel Tasman remained stuck here at the western entrance of Cook Strait for four days. New Zealand's course as a country colonized by the British may have been re-written had he arrived. (6)
Another European explorer to be beaten by Wellington's wind was Captain James Cook
The closest Cook would come to Wellington is on his 2nd expedition when on Nov 2 1773 Cook anchored here two km's from the harbor entrance.
Of course on that day it was blowing a strong Northwest wind, forcing Cook to anchor.
Cook's naturalist, Forster would write a rather unfavorable description of Wellington’s entrance in his journal that day , “the bay was dreary, blackish, with barren mountains...a miserable country” (7)
Apparently he didn't know that you can't beat Wellington on a good day!
The Wellington wind has also impacted literature, with Wellington’s most famous writer Katherine Mansfield making use of it in her works. (8)
This is captured well in the following words, set in concrete just a few meters from the “Solace in the wind” statue.
Together with the statue, this little corner of the waterfront pays a fitting tribute to one of Wellington's most iconic features: its notorious wind!
References:
2. Wellington prospect : survey of a city 1840-1970, edited by N. L. McLeod and B. H. Farland.
3. The Train Accident at Wellington. Otago Daily Times, Issue 8086, 23 January 1888, p4
4. A Strange Beautiful Excitement by Redmer Yska. p71
5. A Strange Beautiful Excitement by Redmer Yska. p75
6. Two voyages / by David Horry. ps 82-87
7. Stone Age Explorers. Waikato Times, Volume 98, Issue 15294, 23 July 1923, p6
8. A Strange Beautiful Excitement by Redmer Yska. p72