Irene. Such a little name packed with so much force. We were prepared for the worst here in NH. We were in the highest-danger zones on all the weather maps - major winds and major rain. We prepared as best as we could. We unburied all of our candles and flashlights, froze ziplock baggies with water in the freezer to help keep our food cold when/if the electricity went out, filled our shed with all the miscellaneous toys and tools from the yard and locked up our windows nice and tight. We were ready for Irene, and after a day of gusty winds and lots of rain, the eye of the storm shifted and hit areas west of us.
We took advantage of a calmer moment and played outside...
Oops! Poor Micah!!!
The meadow behind our house turned into a lake...
This shows the road down to the meadow last fall and the day after Irene...
We were relieved that it wasn't worse where we were (we didn't even lose power, although many other people in the area did...), but couldn't believe our eyes when we found out just how bad it hit areas so near to us. The Upper Valley (the NH/VT boarder) is 45 minutes from us, but is where we bring the kids to the pediatrician, where we go out to eat and shop, where I attended church with my family for many years. And across the boarder into Vermont is Scott's old stomping grounds. He grew up outside of Rutland and still has many friends in the area. It is truly devastating to see what has happened throughout that state. Covered bridges that have been standing for hundreds of years were completely washed away. Homes, businesses, farms, churches, stores...all completely ruined. Route 4, a road that we have both driven more times than we can count, is impassible. People are stranded in many towns because literally every single road in and out of town has been ruined. It's shocking and so, so sad. It's going to take a long time to rebuild. Scott and I have been scouring the internet these last few days looking at images and videos of the devastation and we are truly saddened. Here are just a few of the images that show some of the destruction...
The wonderful Farmer's Market in Woodstock...
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| Via Dorothea Mongulla on Facebook |
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| Via Jeffry Lewis - Facebook |
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Covered bridge in Scott's home town... |
| Via Jeffry Lewis - Facebook |
Scott's area of VT...
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| Via Jeffrey Lewis - Facebook |
Route 4...
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| Via Dorothea Mongulla - Facebook |
Route 4 Woodstock...
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| Via Dorothea Mongulla - Facebook |
Route 4
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
The beautiful Simon Pearce...
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
Right outside of Scott's old town near Killington...
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
This bridge was literally swept away...
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| http://www.buzzfeed.com/mjs538/incredible-pictures-of-irenes-destruction-in-verm |
We are thankful that we are safe, but we are praying for friends, family and strangers who were impacted so immensely in the Upper Valley and throughout Vermont.
4 comments:
So happy that you all are safe! Praying for those who were affected by the storm...
Also, I really like your new banner! I'm not sure when you changed it, but I am just noticing it, and it's really fun!
craziness! i am so out of the loop i had no idea about this til i saw it on your blog. sad to lose the covered bridges, isn't it?
Holy cow! I had no idea and I'm one state over. We really are lucky. So sad to see this. Thanks for the post.
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