Tuesday, June 10, 2008

When the Waters Recede

Our beautiful town is now declared to be a disaster area. We've had so much rain dumped on us in the past few weeks that the rivers, creeks and lakes have swollen past capacity. We've had "floods" before, but nothing like this. "The Hundred Year Flood" has surpassed that of the flood records of 1913 and we have more rain in the forecast. It's sprinkling now, as I write this and has been raining steadily throughout the night.

Wednesday night we lost power for over 7 hours. We have a basement with a sump pump and have not been able to afford making a generator or battery back-up a priority purchase. With no pump, the water began to seep into our lower level which is finished. We actually had just installed wood laminate flooring on more than half of it a few short months ago. Maybe the back-up system should have came first, but we were just too optimistic in thinking that we could catch any potential problems in time.

We were able to borrow a generator, but not before more than half of the flooring had gotten wet. So now our brand new floor and all of our hard work seem to be for naught. The water has gone, our pump is now working and keeping up with the ever-increasing demand. But the floor is ruined. It's beginning to buckle and pop up at the seams. But, we're one of the lucky ones. We lost some flooring. Many more people lost nearly everything.

There has been mass flooding all over our town and in the outlying areas. The river has claimed more than two people so far, along with many, many homes, cars and jobs. Nearly everywhere that you can get to, you are able to see the effects of the widespread devastation that has taken place. Many roads are still impassible. Many people are still trying to pump water from their homes in an effort to salvage what is left. Belongings are piling up in driveways and along curbs. People are being brought to their knees in tears, distraught over the hardships this has caused.

But, my town is resilient and we pull together as a community. As the waters recede, I count my blessings and know that we are fortunate to live in such a place and that tomorrow will be better.

2 comments:

Amy V. said...

Whoa. Wondered why you'd been gone for a while. May God be with you and your town and pull you all closer together. Glad you are safe.

Anonymous said...

I am so sorry. The pictures of the devastation all over the midwest are incredible. A tornado hit our neighborhood a few weeks ago. It just barely missed us. But I still don't have a disaster supply kit organized. guess I better go do it. Hang in there.

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