THE CATIFOR}IIA LUMBERMERCHANT

How Lumber Looks

Lumber. shipments of 503 mills reporting to the National Lumber Trade Barometer in the week ending January 14 were 0.4/o above production ; new orders were lS.LVa above. Unfilled orders were 39/o of stocks. production w:as 2B.O/o and shipments were 38.4% above the previous week; new orders 4l.Z% above.

National Lumber Mahufacturers Association reported national production of lumber in the first 1l months of 1955 totaled an estimated 36,217,000,000 b.f., 8/o greater than the like 1954 period. Softwood output was'up 9/o and hard,woods l/o above 1954. Shipments and orders were IO/o above 1954. November production totaled an estimated 3,111,000,000 b.f.,9% below October. Softwood shipments were 3/o below production and orders 7/o below; hardwood shipments exceeded production by 7/o and orders were 8/o above. Gross mill stocks of both on Nov. 30 totaled 8,618,000,000 b.f.

West Coast Lumbermen's Association reported for 169 mills (143 operating) in the week ending Jarluary 14: pro- duction, 110,364,003 feet; shipments, 106,727,412 feeti o'r. d,ers, 123,764,047 leet (12.1% over production). : advertisers into the family of California Lumber "Merchant-isers":

' western pine Association reported for 109 mills in the week ending January 7: production 51,298,000 feet; shipments, 53,707,W feet; orders, 61,995,000 feet (20.9/o above tt3:fifft?

In this issue, we pine Association reported for 108 mills in the week ending January 14: production, 20,351,000 feet; shipments, 18,066,000 feet; orders, 22,617,00O ieet (ll.l3% above production)

Douglas Fir Plywood Association reported orders of 108,124,000 feet in the week ending January 14 were up al_ most 53/o from the previous week and 6.5/o above the lilie 1955 week. Production of 108,760,000 feet was one-third above the previous week and 13/o above last vear.

Nooh Hod lt Mcrde!

San Francisco-The Northwestern Pacific Railroad, prin,cipal shipping medium for a majority of the lumber mills in Northern California, suffered severe damage during the floods (CLM, Page 4, l/t5/56). It is estimated that the cost of repairing the damage from the December floods alone will cost the railroad the equivalent of the profits realized from the shipment of 90,000 CARS of lumber-more than is shipped from this region in a normal year of operation, the California Redwood Association reports to The CALIFORNIA LUMBER MERCHANT.

Norrhern Cqlifornlcl Flood Toll Tcrllied

The sawmills that took the heaviest punishment in the disastrous December flooding of Northern California-and a few retail lurriberyards in the region-spent most of January getting back to normal; digging out the debris and muck, taking a floating inventory, and healing the bruises on manpower and equipment.

For some of the mills, the damage was even woise than had first been feared. At others, like the Maclntosh Lumber Company's mills at Korbel, Calif., it was happily reported that the stories of damage were erroneous, that no casualty had happened and production was proceeding without delay.

But, over-all, the picture was not pretty. Damage Senerally was great and the toll was widespread. Sheriff Harold Scott said that owners of marked logs'on the beaches of Del Norte county, where they had been washed by floodwaters, could start reclaiming their property; he announced the public could start removing unmarked logs as they found them on the coast.

Everywhere, the aid of men and money was being thrown into the breach. The government agencies were making disaster relief availabie; Rep. Harlan Hagen (D-Calif.) said he would introduce a bill in Congress to make lowinterest loans available to victims who lost their homes in the state's floods.

' Most important, the green light was on and one goal was uppermost: to get the roads cleared and tracks restored so that Shipping-the life-line and the present bottleneck of the crisis-could return lumber to its dominant position in the state's and the flood area's economy.

Highway 101

By January 20, according to several trucking firms, the California Highway Patrol office at San Rafael and the Bay Bridge Information (who are in constant communication with Highway 101 conditions), the highway was-at 12:00 Noon-open to all traffic but delays up to two hours could be expected at several points north of Willits' A good part of this delay was due to the huge amount of equipment the state has working on the project and, of course, this is a necessary evil' The January 14-15 weekend rains-again of near-flood proportions-slowed up repair work and, in places, added to'the repair job. A bad

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A HELP|'NG HAND-Fotlowing fhe Coodr of December 17-22 many of rhe Norrh' ern Cnliforniq rnills turned from their irnpcrtonl dry-kilning of quoliry finilh lumber lo the more immediote need of drying mottresses, furniture ond house' hold goodr for residents of neorby communilies. Iop phoro shows the Scofio boll pirk of 4:00 p.m. Deccnber 22, when rhe Eel River hqd risen lo 67 foel' Rodii m*soges wenl ouf from The Pocif,c lumber Co. thare thcl saven dry kilnr would bo avoiloble fo three lown3 in norlhern Humboldr county ond the two photos show use modc of rhe kilns which chorge 2OO.d)O b'f' of finish lumber under normql o?cloting conditions.