Feilding’s clocktower remains stopped, Palmerston North’s is now four minutes slow

Feilding's clocktower has gone from being stuck on 11.44 to 12. Photo / Judith Lacy

Firstly, Feilding’s Cinderella only had 16 minutes to leave the ball but now she is unsure whether to even leave home as the town’s clock permanently shows 12.

Feilding’s town clock stopped on Friday, March 1, at 11.44am. Manawatū District Council had the local horologist (clock repairer) attempt to fix the clock without success. That expert referred the council to Taupō-based Pilbrows Watchmakers, a council spokeswoman said.

On March 15, the company assessed the clock and last week submitted a proposal for two different methods to fix it, which are being considered.

The council is not sure why the clock is now showing 12. The spokeswoman said the mechanism could have slowly slipped, or the drive shaft movement caused a gradual creep.

Meanwhile, Palmerston North’s clocktower is four minutes slow. It had been six minutes slow.

A Palmerston North City Council spokeswoman said the council was looking into it.

Judith Lacy has been editor of the Manawatū Guardian since December 2020. She graduated from journalism school in 2001, and this is her second role editing a community paper.