This was started right after we returned to our home but it took me a while to get it all together.
The wind continued to pick up throughout the day on Monday the 29th. Sometime around sunset, we began to hear the cracking of branches and deep thuds as trees fell outside. The power flickered a few times and finally went out at about 7:30pm. This happened just as Robyn and I were setting up our sleeping area downstairs. We all adjourned with our flashlights and snacks to the living room downstairs. The kids enjoyed themselves and finally fell asleep sometime after 10pm.
Settled in for the storm
There was lots of wind and we could hear the rain getting heavier but it didn’t seem as bad as I had thought it might. With nothing else to do, Robyn and I drifted off to sleep around 11:30 or so.
I woke up a couple times during the night and I was happy to hear that the wind and rain seemed to be abating a bit. As the sun came up we all began to stir and since it was getting cold, I got dressed and ready to get the generator set up and the heat going. Our cell phone service seemed to be completely down – no data and we weren’t able to make any calls. This wasn’t good…. Once the generator was running and we had heat and coffee, I took a look up and down the street. There was a tree down and blocking the road at the top of the hill on Harris Ave just beyond Conklin Ave and another down the street from us at the bottom of Harris Ave that was also completely blocking the road. Yikes!
Tree down at the top of the hill
Tree on wires down the street from our house. The tree that was completely blocking the road further down from here has been removed.
I decided I would drive around to check out the extent of the damage and look around for a place to fill up the gas cans. I unloaded the rest of the gas into the generator and hopped into the car. There were trees and branches down everywhere. It took me a while just to drive out of town due to all the power lines and trees blocking the road but I finally got out to Rt-46. Checking my cell phone, I finally had a signal so I pulled into the Wendy’s parking lot in Sucassunna to send a couple of “We’re okay” emails and update my Facebook status so that people knew we were okay but not able to get phone calls. On my way back to our house, I filled up the gas cans at a station that was running off a generator. At least we had enough fuel for another couple days.
The next two days are kind of a blur. After verifying that Robyn’s surgery was still scheduled for Thursday morning, we packed up and went to my mother-in-law’s on Wednesday evening since her power came back on earlier in the day. This would let Gram and Harvey stay with the kids while I was at the hospital with Robyn. Things went well with the surgery and Robyn was discharged from the on Sunday, November 4th.
Written to my boss on Monday, November 5th: We lost power on Monday evening and about 85% of my town is still without power. The most recent update was that we may not have power back for 2 weeks (http://hopatcong-sparta.patch.com/articles/power-may-not-be-back-on-for-two-weeks-oem-says) and our schools will remain closed until all power has been restored. I’m not sure why we got hit so bad but some parts of the town look like bombs went off, blowing trees across roads, onto houses and cars and taking power lines with them.
My wife’s surgery was still scheduled for Thursday so she decided to go ahead and have that done (at least she’d be in a warm, well-lit hospital for a few days!) and it went well. She came home on Saturday and is fine but will be pretty sore for a week or so.
My family has been staying at my mother-in-law’s apartment (about 30 miles from our house – most of her town has power) since Thursday and between the trips to the hospital and to check on and get supplies from our house I have seen my share of gas lines! I thought I was well prepared for the storm this time around but once again, Mother Nature and our dependencies on technology threw us a curveball. Already making a list of stuff to do for the next one. Maybe you’ll all see me on that Preppers show soon!
On top of this, we’re expecting another storm for Wednesday-Thursday.
Another few days spent hanging around my mother-in-law’s apartment….
Written Thursday, November 8th: Day 10 without power at our home. We’re still at my mother-in-law’s place. Yesterday, after a morning of feeling annoyed that my kids and I would be stuck indoors all day due to the weather, I was spurred to action. I spent a good portion of the afternoon playing Uno and contacting my town and county government representatives as well as our congressman about the lack of communication and clearly false restoration numbers provided by JCP&L. I didn’t get any clear updates from these people but at least I was doing something (and talking to people who are not related to me!). The latest official estimate for power restoration to my area was by Sunday at 11:59pm.
I’m not sure if my communications had anything to do with it but Hopatcong officials stated on Thursday morning that there were 47 work crews in town and the good news is, according to my neighbors who are still in their homes, JCP&L work crews were seen working on our street this evening. I believe they even cleared a large tree that has been toppled across the road since the night of the storm so at least we’re seeing some movement in the right direction. Hopefully we’ll get some good news tomorrow but I’m not holding my breath.
Today, we met up with some friends from our area who are also living with relatives in order to get out of the house and get some fresh air. My wife is getting back to normal but it’s taking a little longer than she had anticipated to be able to move around without pain and keep up with the kids (who are completely bored out of their minds by now) so I’m calling my days a complete wash for this week. I’ve been getting about 4 hours of work in each night after my kids go to bed. With any luck, we’ll be back in our home this weekend and I’ll be back to my regular work schedule for next week.
I’m not complaining – we’re very lucky not to have any serious damage to our home and to have a place to stay!
My mother-in-law went back to work today but my wife is not yet up to keeping pace with two bored 6-year olds running around so I am not sure what my work schedule is going to be for the next 2-3 days. I’m expecting that once my wife is feeling better, I’ll be able to find a relatively quiet spot to get real work done but I may have limited availability over the next few days.
The power finally came back on on Friday, November 9th. Robyn and I went back home to clean up and prepare the house while the kids stayed with Gram.
