Hurricane Helene - 26 September 2024

winds in our area got up to Hurricane Category 2 strength - nobody was prepared as the forecasters had predicted much lower wind speeds

houses were shaking, some being destroyed; trees and powerlines were falling; electricity was cut off; phones and internet stopped working; very sadly 30 deaths in our region

our beautiful little forest before the hurricane

after Helene, many trees were lost

one of my most favourite places to sit and watch nature

now it's a bit of a mess

lucky that the tree and gazebo missed the bedroom

our squashed shed and neighbour's workshop

Ray spent so many hours putting up that fence that is now squashed (14 hours a day in 95+ F heat one July)

we were so much luckier than many of our neighbours

nextdoor, they had a tree through a bedroom

sadly, one of our neighbours died during the storm

the house across the road caught fire when the electricity returned; 8 fire engines

our friends' daughter was absolutely terrified as the winds and trees tore through her house; her dad and a friend drove to save her; they took a chainsaw and cut through the path of fallen trees to reach her in the middle of the storm; I am so thankful that they are all safe and well

trees were down everywhere; people are cutting them up and leaving them for the county to pick up

lots of scenes like this around our house

many powerlines down - we were without electricity for a week; some neighbours for two weeks or more

before we went away, I did the "penny on top of the frozen water" trick so I'd know if we had lost electricity not aware that a hurricane would sweep through the Augusta area

4 bags full of rotting food from the freezer

we lost internet for two weeks

waiting for the insurance adjuster to come out, so we can clear out the trees; until then, this is our temporary bedroom as there are trees that could fall on the bedroom

there's still beauty in all the destruction

and things to make us smile

love this sightseeing dog

love our neighbours! you're not kidding - this is truly "the nightmare before Christmas"