| hondacuraworld |
We've got power as of 8 PM last night, and we've just got in.
Please have patience with us as orders placed since last Thursday night have not shipped. We're doing the best we can to catch up, so please give us until tomorrow afternoon before emailing or calling regarding your order status.
For those interested, here's my personal story of the last 6 days..... |
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| hondacuraworld |
On my way home from work last Thursday, there were a couple flakes of snow coming down, the first of the year. Kind of weird to see them this early......
At roughly 7 PM I was sitting in my living room with my wife and my neighbor's wife watching TV, while our kids were playing in the basement. All of a sudden the power went out, and blue flashes of electricity streaked across the sky. We got up and looked outside to see the heaviest snowfall I'd seen in quite some time. After seeing arc after arc, we herded the kids together in the living room, and grabbed a flashlight to find a transistor radio to find out what in the hell was hitting our town!
The perfect storm. 60 degree lake temps and below freezing air, which made for the coldest air mass in recorded Buffalo history and the worst and most unpredictable thing that anyone even in THIS area has ever seen.
Had to find a way to keep warm and calm the kids, the neighbor headed for the in-laws, while I heated the house with the stove burners and candles lit to keep the monsters away from the kids rooms.
I awoke every 2 hours to regulate the heat, and a frightening explosion around 3 am, it was my large maple tree in the yard, cracking in two and landing atop my garage!
At first light, this is what I saw:
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| hondacuraworld |
We had been cut off from everything but the little Westinghouse 8 transistor set that I'd had for many years, and a local AM station (WBEN 930) which got us through this. No phone, electric, or cable (all the lines had been ripped from the poles by my falling tree), I was struggling for information on what was going on and what was to come.
I managed to makeshift a TV set by running 12V to the chassis and we had TV, which is a lot more than anyone else had.
The first thing, I thought, that I had to do was to plow out, so with 3 vehicles in the driveway, I simply plowed around the other side of the house, plowed the front of the drive, and got the cars free. The issue was, however, that there was over two feet of snow in the middle of the street.
Well, time to try out that $75.00 Arctic cat. Of course, it started every time I ever tried, except when I needed it......
I decided I had to check on some of the other people on the block, so I got out the ATV (3 wheeler) that I just got for $125, plowed wider around the house, and I managed to make it down the block. As I travelled I realized that if I stopped, I would sink in hard, so I shot for the end of the block to turn around. Died. Stuck. After 4 trips back to the house for ether, gas, etc, I helped a neighbor clear the wood out of his driveway and he pulled me back to the driveway.
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| hondacuraworld |
Here are a few other shots of the snow. Again bear in mind that there was ZERO on the ground at 430 PM the previous night.
Since nothing had power, the gas stations and grocery stores were locked up tight. In an effort to spare the wife and kids, we called my in-laws who live in North Tonawanda to see how they were. They were without power, but had a generator going, and were well. Since the Daewoo was last in the drive, we loaded clothes and blankets into the car, and headed 20 miles North.
Seeing four lanes reduced to one with debris, I swerved and dodged branches and power lines and made it there. The car was frightfully low on fuel, so after dropping them off, I headed for Niagara Falls, which was untouched. I filled up in Wheatfield, just south of the Falls, with only 4/10 of a gallon left in the gas tank. Headed for home, and hunkered down with the cat, checking for basement flooding every 2 hours, and trying to stay informed.
The next morning, as the snow started to melt, the biggest fear was flooding. For every night up till last, I and 4 other people were the only ones left on the block, all else had abandoned ship.
I went to visit the wife and kids briefly each day, checking in with my parents from the neighbor's phone (they left us with their keys and asked us if I'd please keep an eye on things)
More pics:
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| hondacuraworld |
In the meantime a big panic had ensued, people buying chain saws and generators as quickly as they hit the shelves, some to pump out their badly flooded basements, and some to resell at a killing. Supermarkets had no heat, minimal light, and very little left on the shelves. That hasn't changed to this post.
But my basement never flooded as others did, and I couldn't figure it out.
Then it hit me.
When I'd tried to use the ATV, I plowed an extra wide path right around my foundation, clearing over 2 feet of wet heavy snow away from it in the process! Then I guessed it wasn't such a dumb idea to do, after all. Karma plays a hand.
Check out www.wben.com for some interesting stuff, there's way too much over the last 6 days to remember.......
But the last two days, it was 60 degrees and the snow all melted. I tried to clear some of the debris but the chain saw bought the farm and there wasn't one to be had within 200 miles of here. People were driving to Syracuse and Cleveland for chain saws and generators.
I did get a little bit done, though before it died.
I managed to pull the large stuff around the house with the Tri-Moto. That thing has earned a place in my heart, for sure.
As I said this now all seems like a bad dream to me as the power here was restored just two hours ago, ending 6 days 54 minutes of darkness. After 3 days of the storm my in-laws did get power back, so they loaned me their 10,000 watt generator. The wife and kids came home, I filled it every 5 hours costing me $60-$80 per day in fuel depending on what was running.
Still don't have a phone, but all things considered, that's minor.....
I may ride the motorcycle to work tomorrow. The roads are dry, snow is melted, and it's going to be in the 60's. Welcome to Western New York. |
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| crmsnidol |
Wow! I will never again complain about the weather where I live.
Glad everyone is alright. |
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| andreseng |
Tim-
Chainsaws are a plenty down here. Do you need me to ship one to you (now that's a switch!)? I'm glad you and your family were all safe.
George |
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| hondacuraworld |
Nope, actually 2 are coming from AudioKarma members, that heard of my plight. Thanks for the offer though, it's MUCH appreciated.
The scary thing is that something similar may set up for this weekend. The meteorologists don't THINK so, but there is a small chance. Or, if this wood gets buried in snow, I'll never get it cleaned out. |
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| hammermdx |
| Yikes, glad you and your loved ones are safe and sound! The rest can be dealt with. |
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| anjan |
Good post Tim. Its all the more amazing that I'm approximately 60 miles east of Tim and we didn't even know that Buffalo was getting slammed. We had a white dusting that morning on the ground that seemed more like heavy frost than snow.
It wasn't until I went to work and popped over to cnn.com that I went wtf!!
Glad you made it okay through this Tim. What a freaky weather pattern!! |
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| R-MDX |
Mother Nature is still the Queen. Never underestimate what she can do.
Thanks for taking the time to do the post, it's nice to see and hear the story from someone who lived through it.
Glad everyone made it through OK. |
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| Fabvsix |
Good to see you and your family survived such a freaky event. Just a reminder why I don't live in snow country....
We have a family cabin in Colorado at 8000 elevation. It can be sunny one minute and snowing the next........very similar....... |
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| G. COLTON |
Glad every one is safe and that you are back out and about.
Was that a silver maple that split apart? They are very fast growing and as a consequence also very weak. Years ago I had a large one start coming apart in a very mild breeze. A 12" limb fell on a bedroom in my home where a friend in on TDY was sleeping. He came out of that room in a hurry wondering what was going on.
Good luck with the final cleanup.
George |
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| trixie |
Very cool experience (pun intended). Fantastic photos.
I was once trapped in an apartment for a week after a freak ice storm in Mississippi. The apartment cooled to 32 degrees and my only source of heat was the dial tone from the telephone. I can relate to your experience. Now that it is over, you'll have a great story for your grandkids. |
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