As
I sit in my house wrapped in my fuzzy blanket, drinking hot cocoa and catching
up on missed episodes of Downtown Abbey, I bask in the relaxation that
snow days bring. The blizzard of 2015, which I am currently hiding out from has
given me two days to relax much needed after midyears week.
But with this relaxation comes pure
chaos between closed roads and power outages, just a few of the dire effects of
blizzards. Supermarkets fill up, as people get ready to stock there
refrigerators full of goods in preparation for being snowed in for days on end.
The so called “Blizzard” of 2015 has
been feeble compared to the famous blizzard of 1978 which began on February 5,
1978, dissipated February 7, and resulted in 1.88 billion dollars in damage.
About 100 people were killed and 4,500 were injured during the blizzard where Boston
received 23.6 inches of snow. If you are unsure about just how horrific the
blizzard conditions were, you can surely ask either your parents or your
grandparents and they can tell you all about it.
My inspiration for writing this blog came
after my mom, Lauren Harrington, told me about her experience with the blizzard
of ‘78. Students in Woburn were out of school for two weeks. Harrington commented on the impact of all that
snow.
“If you were in your basement and looked out
the window all you would see was snow…[and] sleds came in handy during those
few weeks,” recalled Harrington.
The extent of the damage seemed almost unimaginable
as tens of thousands of people were forced to move to temporary emergency
shelters. About twenty-five thousand houses were seriously damaged. About fifty
four people were killed, mostly by falling power lines. A state of emergency was put into effect
and the United States National Guard was brought in to help clear the roads so
that transportation could start again. In total, it took six full days to clear
the roads.
Cross Country skiing became extremely
popular during those few days as it was the only way to get around. My mom
explained to me that the only way to get down her driveway was to take a sled,
then using temporary snow shoes that my grandpa made out of tennis rackets to
walk on, despite that there was nowhere to go.
As much as I love to sit in and relax,
it does get quite boring being trapped in the basement. After a few snow days, it’s
always important to take into account just how dangerous these extreme storms
can be. As I press play on the next episode, I wonder what it would have been
like to be stuck in the blizzard of ‘78 and if the blizzard of 2015 is even
close to a glimpse of what it was like.
Sources:
Sachtelben,
Marilisa.“Winter storm Juno to hit on blizzard of 1978 anniversary.”
Examiner.com.
27 Jan 2015.
Sakata,
John. “Storm mirrors the blizzard of ‘78”. Eagle-Tribune. Eagletribute.com. 28
Jan 2015.
No comments:
Post a Comment