Hurricane Irene turns out to be a strange storm insofar as its kind of hit or miss damage and its doling out of wind and water.
At our house, we have only the aftermath of what could have been a normal rain storm; just down the street about two miles, in the same town, the street is closed due to the Pequabuck River overflowing. The same river took out part of a business in our town and flooded the adjacent village and next town over. Two men used very poor judgement when deciding to take a canoe out into the Pequabuck. One is now missing.
Just Down The Road From Our House |
The Pequabuck |
Meanwhile at the Ted Knight Bridge at the other end of our neighborhood:
Looking For The Maiden of The Mist |
In Town the Pequabuck Flows Under Several Buildings Which Have Straddled It For Years |
Sunday Stroll In the Park People Like Us Out Gawking |
Along the Connecticut coast several homes were lost - one floated away in Long Island Sound.
All was calm except for rushing waters this afternoon, but now at 6:30 PM Sunday, the winds are picking up again and we are a little worried about trees near the house. There is still a good chance we could loose power.
All of the Northeast and New England is bracing for more flooding as water continues to drain into rivers and streams.
On a lighter note, my sister who is a nun and living in a house a few hundred feet from the waters of Long Island Sound decided to stay home with another Sister and ride out the storm. I called her to tell her that the town was imposing a voluntary evacuation and that she should consider leaving. She said no, she wasn't worried.
The conversation made me think of this story:
There was a big storm coming and the warning went out to evacuate. The local police went to every house. One old die-hard evangelical refused to leave and said to the police, "I trust in the Lord, the Lord will save me"
Then the rains came and the water began to rise. Volunteers came in a Jeep, but still the person refused to go, repeating to them: "I trust in the Lord, the Lord will save me"
The water continued to rise and was up to the top step of the front porch. Then a rescue squad arrived in a motor boat, begging the person to come with them. But, still refusing to leave, only said, "I trust in the Lord, the Lord will save me".
As the flood waters began to inundate the home the person somehow made it to the roof-top with a bible in hand when a helicopter flew over and lowered a life saving harness. They yelled "Put on the harness if you want to save your life." Waving the bible, the person still refused to take the harness and shouted, "I trust in the Lord, the Lord will save me."
Then, suddenly the whole house was swept away and the person drowned in the flood waters.
Standing before the Lord in heaven, the person begged the Lord to answer one question:
"Lord, I believed in you and had faith. Why did you not save me from the flood?"
The Lord replied, "You foolish human. First, I gave you a warning, then I sent the police, then a Jeep; Then I sent a boat and finally a helicopter. What more did you want?"