Stories of The Great Ice Storm of 2015 continue to be told
COMMENTARY
By JANET LORD
For The Vista
I’m not sure if it was predicted … probably was, but I didn’t get the forecast message. I don’t know exactly when The Great Ice Storm of 2015 struck, but I was told about many first-hand experiences.
My next door neighbor related how she thought her roof was falling in as giant limbs loaded with ice struck her home. Across the street, they told of power flickering off and on with the final loss lasting 4 or 5 days.
Of course the loss of power negated all forms of electricity, leaving the neighborhood without heat, lights or telephone access. Folks with special needs actually evacuated their homes in search of shelter in local motels.
With power lines down, trees and all sorts of debris blocking many ice covered roads, one person described the area as looking much like a “war zone.”
My awareness of the severity of the situation came the day after the storm struck as I received a few photos and brief messages from a neighbor who still maintained enough power in his cell phone to transmit.
By now, you may be wondering , “how come she didn’t know what was happening?” Reason: I was basking in the sun on the beach in Florida, my thoughts largely concerned with not getting a sun burn.
Feeling pangs of guilt upon learning what had happened in Fairfield Glade I began to worry about how bad things were there, if everyone was safe and that no injuries had occurred, how long the power would be off and, as President of our Home Owners Association, what needed to be done to initiate clean up.
Although I was in Florida, I had been through two life-threatening disasters and so I was intimately familiar with the effects and after-effects of Mother Nature throwing curve balls into our otherwise calm and peaceful existence.
Upon arriving back in the Glade and surveying the damages thrust upon us, I was saddened to see the devastation but heartened to know no major physical harm had befallen any of our residents.
After surviving the loss of my home in a tornado and a near-death experience in a hurricane, I have adopted a mantra of “the glass is half full” when loss of life is not involved.
Difficult, expensive and disheartening as it may be, The Glade has survived The Great Ice Storm of 2015.
With perseverance, hard work and faith we will once again enjoy the beauty that remains all around us. I am hopeful … remember the oft quoted phrase “If you are lucky enough to live on the Plateau you are lucky enough.”