Our preparations are complete and we're hunkered down
waiting. The winds are picking up exactly as forecast. The questions in our
minds are, did we do everything we needed to do? Is Dorian going to be as bad
as the forecast? Will Katie-Lew stand the test? Are we going to come out on the
other side unscathed? What about our neighbours?
From talking to our Newfoundland neighbours, they've seen
this before. As late as last winter they saw winds approaching hurricane
strength. They've been down this road, they have a tested checklist of things
to do before it hits. Our neighbour Cecil says Katie-Lew "will hold up but
she'll be rattlin' tonight." They don't appear worried, but they are
concerned. More than once we heard "I don't like the look of this one".
They've moved their boats into the harbour or taken them out
of water all together and lashed them down. Some have weighted down their wharfs in preparation for
the forecast storm surge. For the most part, everything that could be taken
inside was. They expect a power outage.
Penny, our travel trailer was perched on the Rocky Shore all
summer. We had her anchored there for moderate winds, but they wouldn't stand
up to 130 kms/hr winds. So this morning, thanks to friends, we were able to move
her deep in to the protected harbour area. We thought of getting her into
storage early, but post-storm, she has the potential to provide us with propane
heated shelter and cooking facilities in the case of Katie-Lew damage or a long
term power outage.
Over the past week, we've upped our provisions. Marlene has
categorized wine and potato chips as non perishable foods. She's technically
correct, but I'm not sure that's what the Emergency Preparedness folks meant in
their 72 hour survival list.
We have rough plans in the event a large window breaks or if the roof blows off, but are they executable in the dark?
As we sit here waiting, it reminds us of when we were in New
Zealand a few years ago, and rode out Cyclone Lucy in Sea Perch cottage. That
time, our preparation time was far less, our surroundings totally foreign, but as
luck had it, we were on the coast's leeward side and the cyclone was downgraded
to less than forecast.
Will we be lucky a second time or will our preparation bring
us through?
Ready or not, here she comes, so we're hoping for both.