Big Storm

[kyratshooter]

had a big storm here Tuesday morning.

I woke at 7 am to the sound of a freight train going through the house. Jumped out of bed and was immediately hit by a 100 mph blast of wind. The house shook, lights went out, I heard the sound of peeling metal on metal and a huge crash and the concussion of the ground moving.

Said a quick prayer and prepared to meet my maker.

Five minutes of pure bedlam outside and I was still alive and grabbed the small flashlight to get to the big flashlight. Ran from window to window trying to see what was left of the place and realized the rain was so hard the light would not penetrate more than a couple of feet. No leaks inside, no protruding branches or gapping holes so I sat down in the dark to wait for daylight, then realized it should already be daylight!

Neighbor banged on the door wanting in. Came in soaked to the bone screaming she did not want to die alone!

About half hour latter it brightened up enough to see so I was spotting things in the yard with the big light and informed the neighbor she now needed a new shed, her back door was torn off and one of her trees was down, the big one, and it was across the road.

One way in, one way out and the tree was across the one way. BIG TREE! Little car arrives with wife that needs to get to work, followed by another wife that needs to get to work. 2 quick phone calls and husbands arrive with chain saws. Big tree is out of the road in about 5 minutes.

I go out on the back porch in the semi dawn and realize something is wrong. Discover that all the screen is blown off the screened in back porch. Search with the light and realize I have a tree missing! Big tree, 4 feet diameter and 50 feet tall. It is now covering most of the back yard. Torn out by the roots. All the guttering is blown off the back of the house and part of the siding is gone. I suppose that was the metal sound I heard.

At least the walls are still up and the roof is still on.

No power, no internet, no phone, no cell phone.

Morning spent visiting neighbors, accessing damage, preparing for a night without power with temperature dropping. Rained most of the day. Seems like everyone but me is going to stay with kids or parents or relatives. I put all the food from the fridge into the cooler, pack it with ice and break out the Buddy Heater. That little Buddy heater kept my 12x26 living room at 75 degrees with an outside temp of 39 for the whole night. Buddy Heaters rock!

I had the big Deitz railroad lantern sitting in the bath tub used as a night light. Just that lantern kept the bathroom pretty warm.

Power came back on at 9 am. 26 hours without juice.

I spent the day looking at the damage today. There is nothing that needs immediate attention except for the guttering and I will climb up there and deal with getting that down tomorrow. I will worry about replacing it latter. The big tree will be cut up one limb at a time when and as I feel like it. Probably one of the neighbors will volunteer to cut it up for the firewood it will make and I will be happy to let them have it. I just had a procedure done on my back and I am not about to mess that up again trying to do something that will wait forever if necessary.

Anyhow, I was gone for 36 hours with no internet and that was what I was doing. Big fun!

[natertot]

Hey KyRat, glad you made it okay. We were fine in my area, just some minor flooding at the local river but it didn't even reach any buildings. Just flooded a park and a bike trail.

Really glad you didn't suffer anything big. If you need a hand with some stuff, please let me know via pm. I have no problem coming down and giving you a hand. I know you have some physical ailments and I wouldn't take issue with you pointing while sipping coffee.

Stay warm and dry.

[hunter63]

Wow, sounds like quite a storm...we didn't get much of anything except a dusting of snow on the grass.
Glad you survived.....Il. had several tornado that leveled a lots of stuff.

I would be calling around for a "tree guy'.....I'd get in a couple of cuts or about 15 min, before taking a nap....this getting old stuff sucks.

Actualy DW and I stopped to do some shopping after my Dr. appointment, she was driving.....
Our snow was just starting.....she had the proverbial bread and milk, .....I had beer and chips........and TP.
Girls says...."Looks like you are ready".

[Tokwan]

I am only glad you are OK Dude....and now...looks like you gnna have new furnitures from that tree.

[1stimestar]

Wowsa. Glad you are ok. Nice to be prepared huh?

[kyratshooter]

This is the second time this has happened since I moved here. Another tornado came through about 1/2 mile from the house back in 2012.

I have now decided that this place will not blow away. If it could it would be gone by now.

I am in no big hurry over the little damage there is. None of it is of immediate need. I will cut some wood and rest a day, cut some more.

I will be up on the roof tomorrow. Just getting that guttering down. I will not try to do much of anything while the weather is cold.

[crashdive123]

Glad you are OK.

[Pennsylvania Mike]

It could always be worse, glad you are OK.

[Rick]

Between storms and heart attacks one would think the Good Lord is trying to tell you something. Glad it was only a trial run and you made it through relatively unscathed. The material things can be fixed. People...not so much.

[kyratshooter]

If the good Lord is trying to tell me something I sure can't tell what it is!

If he wants me he can take me any time. At my age and after what I have been through I faced my mortality long ago.

All of this might not be Him. Could be the devil smacking me around a little bit! Once every 4-5 years he does a "drive by" like this to remind me he is still roaming around looking for a soul to steal.

[BornthatWay]

Sure glad you are ok. Here in my area the wind did some damage here and there to folks. The biggest issue was the cell tower for our area. I think it is finally fixed.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[hayshaker]

glad to see yer ok krat, moments like these are something.
i once saw a tornado being born in the northwest part of the property.
you know the color change. when the clouds turned green that's when i got worried.
turned out though it did not become a tornado till it got bout 5miles from the house.
and touched down in a farmers field, BTW now go out an get all tat new found firewood.
waste not want not, ya know.

[hunter63]

The wind storm came thru last night and all day today....

One 6" dia 12ft. long branch came down in our 50 mph winds.
Used the little Ryobi 18 v. lithium saw.

That saw has been in the back of the truck since Dec.....

Still has enough power to make may 4 cuts......to move pieces to back yard.

Didn't have to back out the truck to get out Remington 115 saw and/or Stihl saw out

Didn't have to run an extension power cord for the 115 volt saw....
Didn't have to check gas Stihl 16" gas saw,...that has been sitting since October...may have needed to mix another gal up....fill chain oil.

Yeah....for a couple of cuts to get out of the driveway....That little Ryobi came thru again.
Cut all day with it... no....make a couple of cuts......Heck Yes.

[kyratshooter]

Yea, I am going to have to get the electric saw out and cut up that big one that fel behind the house.

I went out and looked at it but I have not touched it yet. Doggone thing is hollow from top to bottom! Been rainy and damp or clear and cold for the last week. The power company and cable company have done a number on our area. They came through and cut all of one neighbors trees down since they were growing around the lines.

I have a big sycamore they need to take down but I bet they will not fool with it. That tree has been there since God was a kid.

It has a perfect limb growing sideways from the trunk about 12 feet up and I have always felt it would be the perfect place to dispense justice should society ever collapse and leave such things to the locals. One never knows when a group of ner-do-wells with BOBs will roam through, trespassing and camping unsupervised.

[Rick]

I suggest you give it some more time. You really should go out and look it over a good half dozen times. It might be good to hold a cup of coffee in one hand to use as a counterbalance since things are so hilly there. A big cup of coffee. You have just entered the pondering phase of the project. 90% of the effort should go into pondering. 10% into ignoring it.

[crashdive123]

The wind storm came thru last night and all day today....

One 6" dia 12ft. long branch came down in our 50 mph winds.
Used the little Ryobi 18 v. lithium saw.

That saw has been in the back of the truck since Dec.....

Still has enough power to make may 4 cuts......to move pieces to back yard.

Didn't have to back out the truck to get out Remington 115 saw and/or Stihl saw out

Didn't have to run an extension power cord for the 115 volt saw....
Didn't have to check gas Stihl 16" gas saw,...that has been sitting since October...may have needed to mix another gal up....fill chain oil.

Yeah....for a couple of cuts to get out of the driveway....That little Ryobi came thru again.
Cut all day with it... no....make a couple of cuts......Heck Yes.

Glad it wasn't worse.

I too am a big fan of the battery operated chain saws. I've got the EGO 56 volt model and for small jobs, or throwing in the truck for a camping trip it is my normal go to saw.

[crashdive123]

.................It has a perfect limb growing sideways from the trunk about 12 feet up and I have always felt it would be the perfect place to dispense justice should society ever collapse and leave such things to the locals. One never knows when a group of ner-do-wells with BOBs will roam through, trespassing and camping unsupervised.

Have you started making your dispensing justice cordage yet?:whistling:

[kyratshooter]

I was talking that over with the next door neighbor who has been thinking the same thing for the better part of 35 years.

His suggestion was a good stout bungee cord that would let them barely touch the ground if they choked real good and bounce until they passed out from exhaustion and ended it all. In the old days they called it the dance of death.

Gives new meaning to the phrase "go think about what you did".

I need to pour another cup of coffee and ponder that for a while.

[hunter63]

Well, I have mystery on my hands.......
Got up and went to get the paper this morning.....the 5 big pieces laying in the front yard .....GONE?

Spent yesterday evening contemplating how I was gonna get those pieces to the back yard...as the yard waste dump in't open yet.
Would require getting them there...storing a while, then reloading at some point.

As I am still under a 10 pound limit for eye surgery....this need more planning than just John Wayne-ing it into the back yard.
My plans were..

Plan 1) get the wheel barrow...life one end up then tilt on to wheel barrow the cart to back yard.
Then I noticed that the wind had apparently blown(? WTH?) the cargo trailer down it ramp about 5 ft....blocking access to the wheelbarrow in the fenced in garden....couldn't get it out without some extra effort.

Plan 2) being truck around to front yard...life and drag pieces to truck, set one end up and life into the truck....
All while avoiding the "Stink eye" from DW....."you know you are not supposed to do any lifting"......To which I add...."Yeah, yeah, Yeah"
Then carry them around in the truck for several weeks till dump opens.....

Still have a garbage can full of sticks....

In the past any similar event meant firewood for the garage wood stove...but haven't use it much last couple of years...and the wood (cotton wood) is not worth it to me any longer.

But apparently it will do some one some good....or took pity on the geezer across the street....
Result is....No plans today, maybe go looking for a Handi Rifle....been a while....LOL

[kyratshooter]

It has been many years since I heated with wood but I still can not drive past a downed tree without estimating how long it would heat my old cabin by the lake.

I went gun hunting last week, have to give this week a rest.

Will shop ammo next week, need to catch back up. I have expended a couple hundred rounds the past few days.

[hunter63]

.......

I went gun hunting last week, have to give this week a rest.

Will shop ammo next week, need to catch back up. I have expended a couple hundred rounds the past few days.

You missing that much?.....Bhohahahaha

[crashdive123]

You missing that much?.....Bhohahahaha

No, but he found out that when that one 55 gallon drum was drained of just a few hundred rounds that it caused the floorboards of the cabin to creak.

[hunter63]

The key here is...."one 55 gallon drum was drained of just a few hundred rounds".......
I know the feeling....

Pssst....I actually own Handi Rifles and extra barrels.....that I do not have ammo for....don't tell any one.

[DSJohnson]

Ky,
I have been gone a lot. Just now catching up. Glad you came though the storm okay. As several people have already observed "stuff" is fixable/rebuildable/replaceable. Good folks are not.

[hunter63]

Ky,
I have been gone a lot. Just now catching up. Glad you came though the storm okay. As several people have already observed "stuff" is fixable/rebuildable/replaceable. Good folks are not.

Sounds like y'all had some problems?....
Doing OK?

[DSJohnson]

Sounds like y'all had some problems?....
Doing OK?
Actually Hunter I am doing real good. I took a short term job back in the first week of January that kept me very busy all through January, February and the first half of March. I was way out of practice to being on a job site for 14 plus hours a day and it really took me a while to "find the groove". Having said that, it worked out well in several ways so I am pleased. I also started back helping cook on a competition Chuck wagon crew.
http://i723.photobucket.com/albums/ww236/dsjohnson74/16997858_10212273708058556_6112281176812621063_n_z psvildbh1r.jpg (http://s723.photobucket.com/user/dsjohnson74/media/16997858_10212273708058556_6112281176812621063_n_z psvildbh1r.jpg.html)

[hunter63]

Actually Hunter I am doing real good. I took a short term job back in the first week of January that kept me very busy all through January, February and the first half of March. I was way out of practice to being on a job site for 14 plus hours a day and it really took me a while to "find the groove". Having said that, it worked out well in several ways so I am pleased. I also started back helping cook on a competition Chuck wagon crew.
http://i723.photobucket.com/albums/ww236/dsjohnson74/16997858_10212273708058556_6112281176812621063_n_z psvildbh1r.jpg (http://s723.photobucket.com/user/dsjohnson74/media/16997858_10212273708058556_6112281176812621063_n_z psvildbh1r.jpg.html)

Good to hear that....seem a lot of folks every where had a rough winter....we didn't have much snow, gound didn't really freese all the much...so when we did have rain, wind....ended up with mud.

Congrats on the job....
You are going to have to get into a the Chuck wagon cooking thing a little more......That sound like fun.