Iced Silence ~ After the Carolina Ice Storm of 2014

Heavy ice on the trees

            It’s amazing how much noise our technology makes. When it’s gone, the silence is jarring, it’s so different from the usual rhythm of our nights and days. The sounds that replaced it this past Friday were cracks and pops and crashes. Thursday night, we got hit with an UGLY ice storm. It left my part of the Carolinas in a state of disaster, with downed trees and power lines everywhere. At the end of our road, there are two ways to turn to get out. One was blocked by a downed tree and the other had a power line hanging so low it almost scraped the top of my mom’s van.

            All day Friday, the rain came and trees crashed down in my grandmother’s back yard. We were camped out at her house because she has a gas heater, so we were able to stay warm. By the time we settled in with our sleeping bags in front of her heater that night, all we could hear was ice breaking and clinking against the roof.

            The ice was gone Saturday morning, but as everyone kept saying, the damage was done. I don’t think ANYONE got out without some sort of debris in their yard, either from tree trunks, branches, or even power lines. My dad is a volunteer firefighter and he said they fielded so many calls Friday it was insane.

            Maybe it’s because he’s in public service and has to deal with impatient people who think their emergency takes priority over everyone else’s, but it irritates me a little when people talk smack about the power company and how fast they are working. People fuss if they catch the power trucks stopped at a restaurant. They’ve got to eat too, and the newspaper said that they’ve brought in crews from eleven different states to fix this mess. I guarantee they’re probably working around the clock to get everything restored. Give the guys a break and have a little patience.

Just a hint of the damage

            It’s a different type of silence when there’s no power. Chainsaws and running generators echo all around and it’s music to the ears. People have to come away from the technology that usually runs their lives and work together to make sure we have something hot to eat, cold to drink, and a way to bathe and stay warm. It doesn’t hurt to, every now and then, have to rely on each other. Everyone has something they can offer to help when a situation like this arises, if it’s nothing more than being an assistant to whoever is cooking your supper outside on the grill, or picking up tree debris from the yard and moving it to the woods.

            My folks procured an alternate power source yesterday, which is how I am posting this, but even without that, life isn’t too bad. We haven’t gone without a meal for the last few days and we have shelter. We also have access to a hot shower, which is perhaps the best thing. Still, I can’t say I won’t want to throw a party when the power does come back on.