We weathered the storm of Irene.
It was…scary. Scarier than that earthquake earlier in the week.
I’ve been through my share of hurricanes having grown up on an island, but this storm was unique in that it went over land and affected people as far out as western Pennsylvania and upstate New York. Crazy! Usually the hurricanes turn into tropical storms by the time they reach New Jersey, and even though this storm was downgraded to a category 1, it was a massive 510 miles in size.
We live about a 40 minute drive from the ocean now. The scariest part for were the tornado advisories. There were a few that touched down where we live, and we hid down in our dusty unfinished basement until the warning time period was over, trying in vain to hear updates over the radio. We returned back to our bedroom upstairs with Emma between us as we nervously watched the news updates. There was still a tornado watch until 5am, and I was so worried I couldn’t sleep until then.
Luckily, we had no flooding or damage. The lights didn’t go out. That is, until around 5:30pm the following day. Totally unexpected. We couldn’t get any info from our power provider, PJP&L due to – get this – the power outage. Uhh…say what?
I heard all sorts of restoration estimates from friends anywhere from a day to a week or more.
We went to the zoo yesterday afternoon to get out of the house and try to enjoy the day. I kept checking my phone throughout the day for that, “Your lights are back on” message.
Nothing.
Last night I was starting to lose my mind as we discussed how we would survive the next week without lights, showers, fresh food, the oven and the internet. Just then, power was restored. I thanked Jesus.
As I lay in my bed this morning, I watched the beauty of the moving fan above me, and I wondered, how did people ever survive without power?
A lot of homes around us were hit pretty bad…we’re lucky.
I was surprised by the force with which Irene hit the States…causing over 40 deaths. I live in Canada and we we’re not spared either. Massive winds, rain, lots and LOTS of rain, and flooding in some part of the country. It was bad here too.
Glad you all are safe! We were without power once for 24 hours in 95+ degree weather. It was awful, just awful!
Glad you are all okay. Hurricanes are definitely scary. I lived in Fl for 6 years and ran and stayed with many. Glad the power is back on.
I hate when we lose power. It usually happens in the winter for us, usually from high winds and in the winter, it turns dark just after 4pm leaving many hours of no light. Glad everyone is ok.