There She Blows!!!
As often happens in Alaska, when the skies get clear, winds start to blow. This past Friday night, the wind started blowing harder than normal. The weather channel had mentioned winds in the thirty five to forty five knot range, with possible gusts to eighty. It seemed like they were being a bit extreme, but I know from experience that such hurricane force winds are certainly possible, especially in the winter. As the wind roared outside my window all Friday night, I could hear the glass flexing and branches hitting the side of the house, as well as the trees trying to resist the force of the wind, bending and snapping back in an endless game of stretching to their limits.
I spent a restless night, waking frequently, expecting at any moment to see the night light in the master bathroom dark, and the appliances in the house completely still. About six-thirty in the morning on Saturday, Jan said that we'd lost power. I was already awake in anticipation of such an event. I dressed and went down to the garage, grabbing a flashlight that I had positioned close by the night before, hoping that I wouldn't need it, but fearing I would.
The wind was screaming through the small cracks in the garage door, and I knew the temperature was hovering around nine degrees. Minus twenty with the wind chill. Dangerously cold.
The first winter we spent here in Wasilla, we had lost power for thirty nine hours due to some eighty knot gusts. I tried finding a generator the next day, but there were none to be found anywhere in town, not surprisingly. Fortunately my son-in-law had a small 2500 watt generator that he brought over. We hooked it up, but it didn't have the power to run our furnace, which was our main concern. We could light candles and keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed, but without a furnace, the water pipes would freeze in those cold temps. Fortunately, I have a garage heater, which the small generator could run, so we started it, turned the thermostat all the way up and opened the garage door that leads to the inside. It kept the pipes from freezing, but just barely.
A few weeks later, I was able to buy a 7500-9500 watt gen set that runs on either propane or gasoline. For the past few years I haven't had to use it for more than a few hours. This time I had it on for over twelve hours on Saturday, shutting it down about midnight after the house heated up. I was anticipating having to run it again on Sunday, but the power was turned back on at six AM.
Even though we had power in the house, there was no water. The neighborhood I live in shares water from a community well. The company that runs it doesn't have a generator, so when the power goes out, there is no way to pump the water to the homes. That means no drinking water, no showers, baths, washing your face, doing dishes or flushing the toilets. Drinking water wasn't so much a problem, most of the stores carry bottled water, but a person doesn't want to try to flush a toilet with bottled water, a lesson I learned after the first big blow. Fortunately I had two five gallon buckets filled with water for that very purpose. I was able to find several cases of water for drinking and making coffee and several gallons also if push came to shove and it took even longer for power to come on.
The weather forecast was for another day of this horrible weather, so I went looking for a gas station to buy more propane for the generator, not knowing how long the power would be out. I traveled for miles without finding a gas station open, the wind had knocked out power to vast stretches of the valley. As I drove down the residential streets on my way to the highway, I was constantly assaulted by falling branches that were being blown sideways across the road. At the bottom of one hill, across the street, two trees were resting on some electrical lines, balanced there in a dance that lifted them up and down like a see-saw. I passed by several gravel pits where the wind picked up sand and small pebbles and sandblasted the paint on the car. Oh what fun. I felt like I was in a Nascar race trying to keep the car on the highway, with the wind shoving my Escape across the road while I tried to maintain control.
I dropped in to Wal-Mart, seeing that they had lights on. I thought I might purchase a few items, but one of the employees said they were closed. I found out that they had lost part of their roof to the storm. I watched an older gentleman trying to navigate the parking lot on his way to his car, as the wind knocked him down to the ground. Several people, I assume his relatives, helped him to his car, but not before he almost fell again. When I opened the car door, it was ripped out of my hand and was thrust as far as the hinges would go. I had to then fight the wind to close it, no small task.
This morning I went downstairs and Jan mentioned the gate on our wooden fence was swinging wildly. I put on my heavy coat and hat and stepped out to check the problem. I thought the small lock might have broken in the wind, but no such luck. As I looked around I noticed that a four by four post that was anchored in the ground had snapped in half from the force of the wind. With help from my neighbor, I was able to secure it temporarily. However, as I went around the corner to the garage, I noticed a four foot section of fence was laying on the ground and all the outdoor furniture, the grill and the burn barrel that I had so meticulously covered with tarps six weeks ago, were strewn on the ground with the tarps still strapped to them. What a mess.
Tonight on the news, I watched a woman, forced by the wind behind her, running down the street and twice falling. They showed pictures of buildings flattened and others with roofs gone. There was a small plane at the Wasilla airport that was strapped down with ropes on the tarmac, that was being lifted off the ground, kept from being air-born only because of the tie down ropes. I hope they hold. There are still areas in the town and surrounding area that have no power. There are three shifts of linemen working twenty four hours trying to cut down trees and restore power to homes and businesses. Much like me, I'm sure they would covet your prayers. Those heroes need all the help they can get.
I spent a restless night, waking frequently, expecting at any moment to see the night light in the master bathroom dark, and the appliances in the house completely still. About six-thirty in the morning on Saturday, Jan said that we'd lost power. I was already awake in anticipation of such an event. I dressed and went down to the garage, grabbing a flashlight that I had positioned close by the night before, hoping that I wouldn't need it, but fearing I would.
The wind was screaming through the small cracks in the garage door, and I knew the temperature was hovering around nine degrees. Minus twenty with the wind chill. Dangerously cold.
The first winter we spent here in Wasilla, we had lost power for thirty nine hours due to some eighty knot gusts. I tried finding a generator the next day, but there were none to be found anywhere in town, not surprisingly. Fortunately my son-in-law had a small 2500 watt generator that he brought over. We hooked it up, but it didn't have the power to run our furnace, which was our main concern. We could light candles and keep the refrigerator and freezer doors closed, but without a furnace, the water pipes would freeze in those cold temps. Fortunately, I have a garage heater, which the small generator could run, so we started it, turned the thermostat all the way up and opened the garage door that leads to the inside. It kept the pipes from freezing, but just barely.
A few weeks later, I was able to buy a 7500-9500 watt gen set that runs on either propane or gasoline. For the past few years I haven't had to use it for more than a few hours. This time I had it on for over twelve hours on Saturday, shutting it down about midnight after the house heated up. I was anticipating having to run it again on Sunday, but the power was turned back on at six AM.
Even though we had power in the house, there was no water. The neighborhood I live in shares water from a community well. The company that runs it doesn't have a generator, so when the power goes out, there is no way to pump the water to the homes. That means no drinking water, no showers, baths, washing your face, doing dishes or flushing the toilets. Drinking water wasn't so much a problem, most of the stores carry bottled water, but a person doesn't want to try to flush a toilet with bottled water, a lesson I learned after the first big blow. Fortunately I had two five gallon buckets filled with water for that very purpose. I was able to find several cases of water for drinking and making coffee and several gallons also if push came to shove and it took even longer for power to come on.
The weather forecast was for another day of this horrible weather, so I went looking for a gas station to buy more propane for the generator, not knowing how long the power would be out. I traveled for miles without finding a gas station open, the wind had knocked out power to vast stretches of the valley. As I drove down the residential streets on my way to the highway, I was constantly assaulted by falling branches that were being blown sideways across the road. At the bottom of one hill, across the street, two trees were resting on some electrical lines, balanced there in a dance that lifted them up and down like a see-saw. I passed by several gravel pits where the wind picked up sand and small pebbles and sandblasted the paint on the car. Oh what fun. I felt like I was in a Nascar race trying to keep the car on the highway, with the wind shoving my Escape across the road while I tried to maintain control.
I dropped in to Wal-Mart, seeing that they had lights on. I thought I might purchase a few items, but one of the employees said they were closed. I found out that they had lost part of their roof to the storm. I watched an older gentleman trying to navigate the parking lot on his way to his car, as the wind knocked him down to the ground. Several people, I assume his relatives, helped him to his car, but not before he almost fell again. When I opened the car door, it was ripped out of my hand and was thrust as far as the hinges would go. I had to then fight the wind to close it, no small task.
This morning I went downstairs and Jan mentioned the gate on our wooden fence was swinging wildly. I put on my heavy coat and hat and stepped out to check the problem. I thought the small lock might have broken in the wind, but no such luck. As I looked around I noticed that a four by four post that was anchored in the ground had snapped in half from the force of the wind. With help from my neighbor, I was able to secure it temporarily. However, as I went around the corner to the garage, I noticed a four foot section of fence was laying on the ground and all the outdoor furniture, the grill and the burn barrel that I had so meticulously covered with tarps six weeks ago, were strewn on the ground with the tarps still strapped to them. What a mess.
Tonight on the news, I watched a woman, forced by the wind behind her, running down the street and twice falling. They showed pictures of buildings flattened and others with roofs gone. There was a small plane at the Wasilla airport that was strapped down with ropes on the tarmac, that was being lifted off the ground, kept from being air-born only because of the tie down ropes. I hope they hold. There are still areas in the town and surrounding area that have no power. There are three shifts of linemen working twenty four hours trying to cut down trees and restore power to homes and businesses. Much like me, I'm sure they would covet your prayers. Those heroes need all the help they can get.
Comments
Post a Comment