Hello, fellow HKers!
I am online for the first time since Thursday evening.
I have power which was restored last night, and I am very grateful for it.
Hurricane Helene "brushed past" us overnight Thursday into Friday morning, with winds of 75-95 mph and torrential rains. I did not sleep much that night and was sure my roof was going to be gone by daylight.
When all was said and done, my survey of my property was surprisingly inconsequential. Limbs, leaves, that sort of thing, scattered around the yard, and a branch of a pine tree in the pond behind my house.
Power went out around 5 a.m. Friday.
I had only my cell phone and Facebook to keep informed of what was happening. Local devastation was immense, but not like the torrential flooding in North Carolina and Tennessee. We have many tree-lined streets with old growth, magnificent trees. Rather, we "had" them. A Lot of those trees uprooted completely. Many fell across roads, onto cars and onto buildings. A great many power lines were decimated. And we are rather rural compared to cities, so we are somewhat spread out, and all the trees that fell will be visible for many months to come.
When my power came back last night I was overjoyed. My street, compared to many, was relatively untouched, disaster-wise, except for one house. That house is down the street and was the home of my aunt and uncle for more than 70 years before they passed on. A large pine tree behind the house fell onto the right side of the house and destroyed the roof over the house's bedrooms. It's devastating to see.
I feel rather guilty that I suffered nothing more drastic.
I went out today for the first time since Thursday to get some hot food at the "Don'-Be-a-Square-Eat-at" The Triangle. I drove to the post officer and saw many neighborhood roads blocked by massive fallen trees. Some front yards had huge roots blocking the fronts of houses. Chain saws have been heard here for days and will likely continue for some time.
I am very much aware of how lucky I am, and I am aware of how devastated some lives have been affected.
