Tuesday – October 30, 2012
Our power was still out. The wind had howled and growled all night long, shaking the house intermittently with strong gusts. It was still raining in the morning. My older son and his family who live 40 miles away had also lost power. They were making the best of it by pretending they were pioneers camping in the wilderness. I received an email from my younger son who lives in New York City near my 90 year old uncle and aunt. Chris said that a transformer had exploded on 14th Street and they were left in darkness without electricity also. Although the cell phone reception was poor, we could still communicate with everyone. It just required some patience.
I called Bob and Joan on my cell phone in the morning to see how they were doing. The water had risen to the second step in front of their house and encircled them at midnight. “But it wasn’t too bad,” Bob said. They still had electricity and were using a space-heater for warmth. I reminded him that water conducts electricity. He laughed and said, “Don’t worry. We’re not going anywhere!”
Bob & Joan’s Street
By mid-day, the wind had subsided and it was just raining lightly. It was more like a usual nor’easter. I was dying for a cup of coffee so I suggested we go out to find an open restaurant for lunch. We drove north to Route 6 which is the main east/west road here. Several large trees had up-rooted and leaned on the wires. Broken limbs of trees were scattered everywhere. The top of a utility pole still attached to its wires, rested on the ground at the side of the road. None of the traffic lights were working. We carefully drove west toward the main shopping center and tried to look for businesses with power. Surprisingly, many of the stores had lights burning. I suggested stopping at Barnes & Noble Bookstore’s Starbucks coffee bar. Lots of other people had the same idea because there were about 30 people on line. I joined the line while Jeff browsed. The store was mobbed with people with computers trying to get storm information from the store’s internet/wifi access.
View From the Porch
Later we surveyed the area and found a few restaurants that were open for business. All of them had long lines of hungry families. Most of the entire region was without power. As the day progressed, the wind decreased and the rain subsided. All in all, we considered ourselves lucky. We didn’t have electricity, but we had a dry roof over our heads and everyone in our family was safe and secure.
(Note: Bob’s photos)