It’s been a whirlwind of a week–literally and figuratively.
For several days, those of us who live on the Outer Banks were told that Hurricane Matthew was coming and that it would be big and bad and we should batten down the hatches and prepare for a potentially catastrophic weather event.
As you can imagine, there is a certain level of stress that arises when you hear this kind of news.
How bad? How catastrophic? Do we leave or do we stay? Will the people in our church be okay? How can we help them? What do we need to do prepare ourselves?
Then we started to hear that the hurricane was going to turn out to sea well before reaching the Outer Banks and, although we might get a little wind and rain, it wouldn’t be all that bad.
And so we relaxed a little, watching the storm churn up the coast, relieved to know that it would not have much of an impact on our area and on our lives.
It was a rollercoaster ride for sure–the ups and downs; the worries and reassurances.
And then, late Saturday night and early Sunday morning, we got hit.
I spent most of the night wide awake, listening to the house creak, the windows rattle, the rain pound, and the wind roar with gusts up to 90 m.p.h. About 2 a.m., we lost power,
At sunrise, we stuck our heads out the front door to discover that our little corner of the country that wasn’t supposed to be impacted had gotten slammed. (Virginia Beach, where Sarah is, got similar weather. She has been hunkered down in her dorm most of the weekend.)
These photos were taken within 10-15 minutes of our house.
Matt Lusk
Matt Lusk
Matt Lusk
Matt Lusk
This is the causeway that we cross to go from Manteo out to the beach road where the restaurants, hotels and stores are. There was only one business open (a grocery store with a generator) for several miles.
As we drove around a little, we saw a mile-long stretch where half a dozen power poles were all laid down in a row, some of them snapped in half. My heart sank when I thought about how long it would take to restore power in the face of such damage.
In our 6,000 square foot Youth House (the beige metal building), every inch of carpet got wet and will probably need to be replaced.
Here’s the view from the other side; Steve is headed in to look at the damages.
A few shots of the area around the church.
Although thankfully, our house did not flood, this is the street just one house away from us.
There have been 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfews every night and visitors are still not being allowed over the bridges back into the area.
In the midst of the disruption and chaos, it is great to see neighbors helping neighbors. I just saw this posted on our Locals FB page.
Thankfully and surprisingly, our power was restored last night. I had been preparing myself to be a week without power (especially after seeing those power poles laid out) and was beyond ecstatic to turn on a switch and see light!
I can flush the toilet and take a shower and make oatmeal for breakfast. Happiest of days!
In the midst of my rejoicings, though, my heart is heavy for Haiti, and the Bahamas and the people up and down the eastern seaboard who are dealing with destruction and flooding and loss of property and life.
And in the midst of the crises, I am especially grateful for the rescue workers, medical people, electrical crews, police officers, emergency response teams, etc. who have left comfort, safety and family behind to help the thousands who have been in harm’s way.
Definitely counting my blessings today.
is that today marks my 3-year anniversary of being Grandma Smith!
Here is the photo collage and comment Meagan put on Facebook.
Happy 3rd birthday to my first baby love! He keeps us on our toes but his smile and sweet/funny personality is worth everything to me. I’m so proud of the little man he is becoming. He loves to “work” like daddy, play with friends, laugh, and eat!! Happy Birthday Noah Jacksen! I love you always my baby.
I saw this tip on facebook for anyone that is prone to power outages that last any significant length of time. Place a cup of water in your freezer until frozen. Then place a quarter on the top. When power outages occur, if it is long enough, the water will melt and when power comes back on, obviously the water will freeze again. If the quarter is more than half way into the ice, you should throw out your meat as it has thawed and then refroze.
Mel,
That is a GREAT tip, and I one that I sure would not have thought of. I will remember that for future storms!
So glad the Smiths are safe and well. So sorry, though, for the rest of the folks in the
southeast coastal states.
Jan,
Thank you. It has been quite the trauma for our area.
Very terrible weather to go through, glad to see the pics to show us the reality of it all. What an incredible planet we are on, and what a great God that keeps us. Hope this week of recovery goes well for your area. Ruth
Ruth,
Thanks for the reminder that God is in control of this planet; sucha comfort as we have seen so much devastation in our town and in our half of the state.
hudson fixed my sick computer yesterday…so I can now know what’s happening to my internet friends. soo sorry you are once again dealing with floods, but thankful that you are okay. my heart aches for those who are now homeless, and powerless to help themselves.
Mrs. Pam,
I’m glad your computer is no longer ailing.
Yes, the flooding in this area is horrific and in other parts of NC, even worse. And as you said, so many people homeless and powerless in our area, up and down the East Coast, in Haiti, etc. Such a trying time made bearable by the kindness and generosity of helping hearts.
Glad to hear all is well. Here in central FL we were spared this time, only minor rain and wind. I do remember that back in 2004 when we were slammed with three hurricanes in two months, we went without power for a week at one point! Not fun!
Melissa,
Three hurricanes in two months is beyond my comprehension. And a week without power? Beyond words.
I’m glad you were spared this time around!
We are blessed in that we had no damage just some limbs off the trees. However, some of the people in our area got flooded and lost electricity. Some highways washed out and are still closed. Creeks flooded down the street from us. No deaths in our area as far as I know. NC got really hit hard. Glad you, Steve and Sarah are safe. God is good. Our church has water damage from leaking windows around the ceiling.
Ann,
I’m so glad that storm is over, aren’t you? I just heard that over 60 miles of I-95 is close. Hard to believe!
Glad to hear you’re ok and didn’t have any damage to your home or yourselves. I know what that is like as we had 3 feet of sewage backup in June 2010 and another 2 feet in May 2011. Nasty stuff, had to have professionals come to clear out practically everything in basement, cut out drywall 1 foot above water level, sanitize and dry out at a cost of 10 grand. That didn’t include replacing washer, dryer, water heater, and a very large freezer filled with a quarter cow, salmon, perch and walleye. I still panic when heavy amounts of rain are expected. I have photos and video of the stuff gushing out of the toilet, the freezer floated up, tipped over and opened. For it to happen again not even a year later was the icing on the cake. Residents filed a lawsuit and received some compensation, but some items were irreplaceable and the house just feels dirty.
Kari,
What a horrible ordeal; I cannot even imagine!!
I was sad about having to throw away $50 worth of meat from my freezer. I would have been beyond heartsick at what you had to discard.
And flooding with sewage instead of just water? Oh. My.
I’m just thankful that those experiences are beyind you and will hopefully never EVER happen again!
So glad you are safe and sound! All that water and flooding is really something. Sounds like quite the storm!!!
We had our first snowstorm this weekend. At first it seemed like it would just be a light dusting but then it snowed and snowed all weekend and several centimetres fell.
Happy Canadian Thanksgiving !
Jenna,
Happy Thanksgiving to you, too!
It’s amazing you have so much snow so early. Enjoy the beauty!
Wow! The storm certainly did not miss you much. Glad you are okay and that your house is okay. Prayers for continued restoration of all services and buildings and lives for all who have dealt with this hurricane. And, Happy, Happy Birthday, Noah. Can not believe you are a big boy of 3! Love those first baby photos.
Mary,
We Skyped with Noah and the family last night. He got a new bicycle he had to show off. 🙂
First of all, happy birthday to Noah. He is the 6th person with 10/10 as his birthday. Four Facebook friends and the son of another.
Secondly, glad you have power back so soon. I have a friend in Ormond Beach that lost power on Friday. They got theirs back last night. She had texted me around 5:00 yesterday saying an Ohio team was in their yard and hoped to have their power restored by midnight. They were without water and power for that time due to their water system. Trees down but no damage to the house. They were supposed to leave early Saturday morning to drive to the area to visit me. They’re leaving at 5:00 today. Another friend in Jacksonville also lost hers on Friday, downed power poles also. She said they are working on it now so hopefully they’ll be powered up by end of day.
I don’t miss the days of wondering if a hurricane would hit Tampa but at least you do have several days warning with hurricanes, unlike the tornadoes of the Midwest.
Phyllis,
It’s amazing to me that the power companies get power restored as quickly as they do in the light of such severe damage to the equipment. They are certainly the heroes of many thousands of people this week.
I was hoping you would be able to do an update. So glad to see it here and that you are all OK. What a mess in NC, a bit unexpected. So thankful for all the responders and the generous hearts of those who are able to help their neighbors. And Happy Birthday to your little sweetie. He is just delightful.
Lesley,
Thanks for thinking about us in the midst of all our hurricane truama.
And yes, Noah is definitely a delightful little fella. We won’t see the family again until Decemeber which seems like it’s waaay too far away!
First I am so thankful that you are all ok there. Second, Being a grandparent is probably the very best thing that ever happened to me! Ha! It is something no one can describe until you have that first grandbaby in your arms and totally fall in love with them. I have 3 now and LOVE when they all come to visit grandma. Wendy
Wendy,
You’re right–nothing can prepare you for that first grandbaby, the first look, the first time to hold him/her. Absolutely life-altering, in the best of ways.
So glad you weren’t bombasted with water in your house and that power was restored quickly.
Sharyn,
Yes, I was actually shocked at how quickly power was restored–shocked and thankful!
Wow, you guys are dealing with some stuff! So glad that you are safe and your house and the church facility are ok except for the carpet. Will insurance cover the replacement, I hope?
And yay for electricity! I hate being so dependent on public resources though–sure would love to be more self-sustaining.
Sending love and a hug. 🙂
Deb,
I cannot begin to express how thankful I was when that electricity came back on in the middle of the night. Few feelings better in this entire world. We didn’t have water either, since we were on a pump, so it was extra wonderful!
Sending a love and a hug right back atcha!
Glad y’all are safe and sound. And Sarah too. Been praying for yall this last weekend. Things are good here. At least in my little corner. Any futher then that a lot of damage and roads washed away. Your grandbaby is 3 my girl will be 19 tmr!! Happy birthday Noah!! Take care!!?
Catherine,
Happy 19th birthday to Sarah! Can you believe she is that old? That’s older than you were when we first met you! 🙂
Happy Birthday to Noah! So happy you are safe and have power back. Going without for a week is no walk in the park. Praying God’s mercy and provision on all.
Guerrina,
I cannot even imagine a week without power. I will never, EVER take it for granted.
Wow! Thank goodness the storm wasn’t any worse for your area. It looks like you really were fortunate. The destruction though is so hard to see and its nearly impossible to comprehend what those folks must be going through. They are all in our prayers.
A very happy birthday to Noah! He is such a handsome little guy and has the sweetest smile. Enjoy your day, little man. 🙂
LeeAnne,
Noah had a good birthday, complete with a brand new bike! Just what every little fella needs. 🙂