Nasty storm+No power+Heat wave=NOT GOOD

[Daddy-0-]

That nasty storm last night has knocked out power to much of the D.C./Richmond/Baltimore area. They are now saying it may be several days before power is restored. We are in the middle of a record breaking heat wave with temps around 103-105 yesterday, today and tomorrow. This could turn out to be a very dangerous or deadly situation. Many of these folks lost power a week ago with a similar storm and have just restocked the fridge. Heat index for the area will be around 110-115. I would like to send a HUGE thanks you to all of the linemen and sparkys out there that are working in this heat to try to restore power to those that desperately need it. If you see them working stop and say thanks or give them some cold water or just wave. I hope that this situation does not turn out to be as bad as it could be. Heading out soon to try to find some more gas for the generator. Wish me luck!

 

[fatboy]

Good luck Daddy-O, we have been lucky, power was only out for a couple hours, two day in a row.

 

[DRP]

We're on but lots of outage down here in sw VA as well. Our clients came up for the weekend and we were still at the job when it hit. We tried to get home after and didn't get a mile, 4 trees across the road in 2 miles, slept on the porch and cut out Sat morning. It's interesting what falls and what doesn't. That 2 mi stretch through the NF is full of adelgid killed hemlocks that have worried me, none of those fell. It was largely good looking trees with a full crown. There was one stretch of dominos where one tree would topple the next, and then the next. Got home about noon and got the lower drive cleared by about 6. There's a poplar top hanging below the house, broken about 40' up and several locust down. Firing up the mill this morning, might as well make lemonade .

 

[RJJ]

YA I know my wife was traveling back from SC and could not find gas and the hotel they found had no AC or light. Good luck!

 

[steveray]

We were down 11 days in the October blizzard here last year....it was gettin ugly by the end....I got called in to look at trees on houses around midnight, took me about an hour to go my normal 10 min drive, trees and powerlines blocking most roads. I was up on lawns and driving over things i really shouldn't have...Cost me a windshield and a break line...

Good Luck! Keep Cool!

 

[mtlogcabin]

Heading out soon to try to find some more gas for the generator. Wish me luck!

If I was a gas station owner I would have a generator so I could sell gas when there was no electricity.

Maybe you should take your generator with you so you can power the gas pumps to get gas for your generator.

 

[kyhowey]

If I was a gas station owner I would have a generator so I could sell gas when there was no electricity.Maybe you should take your generator with you so you can power the gas pumps to get gas for your generator.

Heard Rush mention this this morning. What about all those electric cars sold in the D.C. area?

 

[mtlogcabin]

My dad has a generator at his home in Ft Lauderdale for the past 20 years. He converted it to run on natural gas when he could not get gasoline for it after the 1st hurricane and power was out for over 4 days. Never been without electric since

 

[peach]

We weathered the storm ok; power came up within 4 hours (thanks to being close to a substation); internet and TV were later in the evening. No fun for those without AC, though... it is really hot and humid (and will be thru the weekend).

 

[Daddy-0-]

Our power came back after about 20 hours but it is still out in areas. The heat is relentless. I feel for those without ac and I am saddened by the loss of life with this storm.

 

[DRP]

The third storm took our power out Sunday at noon, we just got back on. Many thanks to the crews that have worked non stop. The winds hit about 85 mph, design here is 90 below the SWR elevations and exposures so it was close. Many more trees have come down with lots of widowmakers hanging. The windthrow pockets I mentioned in the first storm grew with the successive storms. Once a pocket is opened in a dense forest the wind can get in and and chew the hole bigger and bigger. We have some injuries locally and a fair amount of property damage, mostly from tree falls. One woman was riding on the horse trails above us when the storm hit Sun. She was hit by a falling limb, and is still in the ICU last I heard. Several porch roofs in yards that I've seen, the only total collapse I've heard about was a barn.

I hadn't run the genny since the ice storms in 93, really need to do better. It took a morning to clean out the carb and a good love tap on the genset to get the brushes to seat and produce power. Back when Hugo hit there were 27 trees across the road between us and the blacktop. I got the local store, there was a tractor out front with a generator spinning. When I went inside there was just one bulb burning. "Rex, why have you only got one light on?" "Beer's cold and the pumps are on" ... nuff said