Ice is the big story around here right now.
Here in the Ozarks, we have been caught in the huge storm that has stretched from Texas to the Great Lakes.
The problem here has not been the roads. It hasn’t really been cold enough for any to stick to the streets. The problem has been ice accumulating on trees and power lines. Limbs have been falling all over the place. As I look out my kitchen window, all the trees are covered with a half an inch of ice and are sagging, bending low. It is one of those natural occurrences that are staggering in their beauty but also dangerous.
Last night when the power went out, I was sitting on the couch reading by candlelight and I heard a sound that I first thought was gun fire or a string of really loud firecrackers. It was of course, limbs falling. The sounds went off intermittently all night long. It was eerie.
We weren’t hit here nearly as hard as others were. Being without power for a short while is a small inconvenience.
Here is a photo from the Springfield News Leader of a power company worker in the thick of it.
Photo by Dean Curtis/News Leader
Stephanie Vann wrote,
That noise must have been a little creepy. It would be the perfect setting for a horror story in some ways. In the dark, particularly in an isolated spot, and able to hear the trees creaking.
Link | January 14th, 2007 at 10:48 am
Jayne d'Arcy wrote,
I remember that cracking of tree limbs the last year we lived in Redding, CA. We were in the midst of finalizing the sale on our house when a blizzard hit (first time in 15 years). The power lines went down and all night long I was listening to branches bend, creak and sometimes crack with the weight of the snow. What was worse was the huge tree we had that was literally inches from the house. It had some spindly branches that were big enough to put quite a dent in our roof. It didn’t help that our realtor was calling every half hour to see if the tree fell, thus ruining the sale.
Stay warm, Jack.
Link | January 14th, 2007 at 11:32 am