Post Irene Bike Ride Pictures

Go to this public link to see the pictures I posted on Facebook this morning. You don't have to be on fb to look at this link.

I took these pictures on my bike ride this morning to look at the CT river and any storm damage I might find. Check out the link of barrels (?) floating in the river.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2478580164232.2151119.1244354945&l=411408a761&type=1

Raging River of Mud

I went out of my way to go to the Suffield end of the Canal path just to get a look at the river. I was speechless!

I've seen the river higher. I've seen more debris floating down the swollen river. But I've never seen it look like mud. It looks like a slurry.

People were standing in the observation area just looking. No one was talking. Like attending a funeral. Very surreal.

And, darn it, I had neither binoculars nor camera. Grrrrrr!

BTW...both North and South Water Streets are closed. And there is a huge tree split and laying across one of the side streets from Main St to South Water (I think it's next to the police station). Try as I might, I could not get down to the river. Maybe tomorrow morning I'll walk down to the boat launch...with binoculars and camera. This isn't going away any time soon.

After the Storm

Getting these pictures loaded is giving me fits...but here they are.

Now that Hurricane Irene is over I have some cleaning up to do.

When I came down to my Mom Cave yesterday morning, I thought it smelled damp, so I checked the utility room. Water was just beginning to run down the wall from the window well. YIKES! I raced up two flights of stairs to get dressed then grabbed a small pan to bail the water. Of course I got soaking wet, but at least the water stopped coming in. But, before it stopped, the damage was done.

I bailed the window well twice more before the rain stopped! I have a well cover, but the water was seeping in from the soil into the well along the foundation.

Because the window well filled up and spilled into the basement I had to pick up the pieces of vinyl on the floor. They were just set aside so I could put towels down on the floor to absorb water. Once that was done the towels went into the washer to spin then into the dryer…then back on the floor.

That vinyl has to be brought outside today so I can wash the backside with a bleach solution to prevent mould. Once the sun and wind dries the backside, I can put the pieces back on the utility room floor. Piece by piece the topside will have to be washed down also, but not until they are on the floor.

The big job is in my office area. Water seeped under the partition and under the vinyl. However, there is a lot of furniture on top of that vinyl! Another job today will be to move my couch forward so I can move some of my furniture onto the carpet. I unloaded both file cabinets yesterday just so I could move them…but they need to be moved off the vinyl in order for me to be able to take it up and outside for cleaning. Then the floor underneath has to be completely dried before the vinyl can go back down.

I have informed the management company and have requested someone come over and caulk the window. Little by little I’m fixing things. If I hadn’t finished the basement it wouldn’t have mattered. I need to get a small pallet to get a couple of heavy things up off the floor…even a few 2x4’s would do.

Yep. Little by little. A lot of work to be done!