The Ice Storm Cometh

Last Thursday, the television weather forecast called for ice storms overnight and cautioned viewers that conditions would be bad - trees covered in ice, icy roads, etc. We left Dominic's birthday party at Pump It Up at 6 pm and there was just rain and wet roads. No ice. We went to bed that night - no ice. We woke up the next morning and our trees were icy. Not crazy icy, just covered in a relatively thin layer. A few branches looked weighed down, but otherwise not bad. School was canceled for Millbury, causing us to wonder why.

Then we turned on the news.

Wow, the photos they were showing of trees and power lines down across the state, of tens of thousands of people without power, of cars, fences and houses crushed by falling tree limbs... Unbelievable! It turns out that the western side of Millbury didn't have power for at least 24 hours, but that's nothing compared to what some MA residents experienced - and are still experiencing. There are still people I know without power, with an anticipated date of Monday, Dec 22nd for when they could get it back. A week and a half with no power. People are in hotels, spent nights in shelters, lost all the food in their freezers.... You can't buy a generator anywhere in MA as they are sold out. If you are a lucky one who has a generator, you'd better lock it up because people are stealing them - not to mention looting the houses that people have had to temporarily leave. Unfortunately a crisis can really bring out the dregs of humanity.

On Monday, I drove through the town of Shrewsbury on my way to go Christmas shopping. I was absolutely shocked to see the state of things just 15 minutes from our house. The tree line looked as though a tornado snapped off the tops of every tree - limbs were broken and shattered, their inner wood a bright, sharp contrast to the dark exterior bark. Like sharp, jagged teeth they're a visible reminder of the ice storm. Looking lower, every yard, sidewalk, and open area was piled with branches, some small, some full trees broken off from near the roots. The tree-lined cemetary was apalling. The tombstones were literally covered with debris, some knocked over by the falling trees and limbs. Unbelievable. I couldn't pick my chin up off my lap as I gawked at the devestation.

I don't know how we got so lucky. Not only didn't we lose any of our trees, but we never lost power. We were snug in our beds fast asleep as thousands of people - and friends - in neighboring towns lay in the dark with no heat, listening to the crash of trees as they fell, hoping their cars, their fences and their homes would be intact come morning. No, I have no idea how we were so lucky, but I am thankful that we were.