As I sit here about to start writing about
the last 7 days I can still hear helicopters that are transporting goods to
either Staten Island or the Rockaway’s.
Over a week ago we started getting the
warnings about this so called super storm that was going to hit New York and
New Jersey. I have to say that this being now our second hurricane here in Manhattan, it did have that familiar ring to it.
This time around I felt there was not as
much of a lead up as there was with Irene. When the storm was just a few days
away the warning were loud and clear. Again the evacuation zones where clearly
defined and the plan of action was put in place.
I
know many of us here in Manhattan where probably a little bit more relaxed this
time around compared to last time with Irene. This was obviously the worse
attitude to have.
Last Sunday was the last day to prepare!
We
had weeks ago planned to go out to a farm to go apple picking coincidentally on
this “preparation Sunday”. It was the last weekend for the season so it was now
or wait till next harvest season. We decided we would still go as we would have
plenty of time to return and get indoors for the storm. We ended up having a great
day although it was rather cool. I will include some photos later on.
We arrived back to what seemed a night like
every other. The café’s and bars were their usual bustle. There was no
indication of the tragedy that was about to hit in less than 24 hours.
The next day school had been cancelled and
Hugo had to work from home. His work had advised them to work from home as many
employers had done. Parks were closed and businesses were closed as the subway
and busses were also shut down. In retrospect it was what saved our mass
transit system as the damaged that would have been done if they had not done
this would have been catastrophic.
We decided to watch TV and do arts and
crafts to entertain ourselves. At 3.00pm our fellow neighbors decided to have a
get together in the lobby. Everyone was in the same situation and most of us
with children which is extremely challenging in small apartments. We had a great time and the kids had a ball.
Little did we know of the devastation that was about to hit this tri state
area.
The girls went to bed and were excited as
they had now cancelled school on Tuesday too. At no stage did my girls
understand the severity of this storm. Hugo and I are very careful how we allow
them to learn about issues that may be traumatizing. We are both very adamant that children
really need to be protected from the way they learn and process potitially danagerous situations.
We also during the week had the traumatic
news about the Nanny that murdered the two children she cared for. The eldest
child was a pupil of my daughter’s school so again we have had to deal with
such trauma.
Hugo and I stayed up and I have to say it
felt like any other night. It was almost surreal to be watching TV and
listening to what was happening around us.
I finally went to be around 1.00pm however found
it very difficult to sleep with the howling of the wind I could hear outside..
I did start to feel a bit scared. I also expected to lose power shortly as I
was aware of all the power cuts downtown. It was going to be inevitable.
Eventually morning arrived and we all woke
up like any other morning. I quickly got
up to see if the power had been lost and to my relief it was still on. I turned
on the TV and it was at the moment I realized the absolute worst case scenario
they had talked about was a reality. It honestly felt like we were living in a
movie such as Armageddon or something.
.JPG)
Pumpkins galore!
.JPG)
Corn fields
.JPG)
Mummy and Annika on a Haystack ride!
1 comment:
So glad you and your family are ok Tanya.
Post a Comment