The January 12-13 2024 Blizzard
The snowfall total that the storm dropped over a 2 day period was 16 inches by us! 😮 I do not believe I have ever experienced a snowstorm with that much snowfall. If I have I don’t remember. Wind speeds were 15 mph with gusts to 31 mph. The wind remained fairly sustained throughout the storm. The temperature at the beginning and for a good length of time during the storm wasn’t that cold considering it was a blizzard: 36 degrees at storm start and then down to 30 degrees. It was a heavy and wet snow which was a bit of a challenge for the snow blower. This 16 inches of snow added to a snow base of about 6 to 7 inches on the ground. Needless to say, but I will anyway, the winds caused a lot of drifting. I wasn’t even able to take Junebugg to her usual area for her morning constitutional because there was too much snow to walk through behind the barn. She did not have the same interested curiosity of the snow as she did a few days before when I donned my snow shoes and we made a perimeter check.
The Unlucky Homestead
Friday night at 7:45PM, we lost power. After seeing orange flashes out the window bursting in beat with our power going off-on-off-on-off there was dark silence. My House Gent and I had been watching television and now were marooned like whales on a beach; laying flat out on our backs in our electric recliners and unable to operate them without electricity. I was able to shimmy off the deployed chair and through peering out the windows whist I was looking for candles and my flashlight, my House Gent calmly told me that there was something on fire by the neighbor’s driveway. Turns out there was another electrical eruption and overhead wires by the road were arching in continuous, large flashes of hot orange zaps, one after the other for almost 3 minutes straight. I know the time because I videoed it while my House Gent called the sheriff’s department. It wasn’t long before the squad car parked on the road near our driveway to block traffic; not much traffic though since after all, we were in the midst of a blizzard and we hadn’t seen a vehicle go by the house for hours. Then a fire engine responded. We couldn’t see much through the trees so it was difficult to know what was transpiring down there. There were a few more loud, bright flashes in blue and green this time. That’s when the squad car backed away to position further up the road. Once the wires seemed to be done with their fireworks-like display, both units left the area.
A short clip of the excitement
Well it turns out some tree branches fell on the wires and caused all the chaos. We were without power; no electricity or heat, until 11:07 am on Saturday morning. My House Gent and I spent the night on an air mattress in front of the fireplace. We stayed warm enough with flannel sheets, blanket, comforter and finally a wool blanket. Temperatures dropped to around 9 degrees F during the night. Fourteen hours without power.
It was more comfortable than I expected. We used a battery operated generator for the CPAP machines.
This incident, though very inconvenient, had a silver lining in that we now know that our emergency preparation has a few weak spots that we need to address.
The turkeys remain protected in the brooder house. The heavy snow load on the turkey pen caused failure of two of the wire panels. I discovered that the wooden planks we have helping to support the wire roof panels under the tarp are notably under pressure due to a large bend in the middle of the plank. I am very leery to put the turkeys back in their pen, but they can’t stay in the brooder house either because it’s too small for them. The tom has started to be aggressive toward one of the hens and has been pecking the back of her head. I have no doubt this behavior is being exhibited because of the stress of their current conditions. What to do?
The Deep Freeze
Now we have the arctic swoop upon us that is here for the rest of the week or longer and is affecting most of the country. Currently we are under a wind chill advisory until Wednesday morning. The prediction is -35 F wind chills tonight into Tuesday morning then -15 to -25; a warming trend. 😫 I didn’t take Junebugg with us to do chores this morning. It’s way too cold for her and yesterday she was whining because her feet were cold, so cold that she started limping. Poor baby!
The chickens remain locked up and protected from the wind and snow. Unfortunately they will need to bully through the cold. The walls are frosty. There is plenty of bedding pack and there is warmth in numbers.
Morning Chores
Now that I’m wearing glasses instead of contacts, I can’t wear my goggles to make sure I have all exposed skin covered. This is the best I can do.
Having said all that, I can rest easy in the fact that where we live we never have to worry about hurricanes, alligators, or snakes. 🚫 🌀🚫 🐊🚫🐍
Habakkuk 3:4
His brightness was like the light;
He had rays flashing from His hand,
And there His power was hidden.
~ Habakkuk, Prophet
