Sounds of Hurricanes

Uncategorized 1 Minute

Perhaps all hurricanes have a distinctive sound, but I’m going to write about the difference between one in North Carolina and one in New York. There was obviously wind with both storms, but wind on Long Island was really loud. In NC the recent storm traveled over land for a great distance, and the wind was getting tired. It wasn’t very loud, although you could hear it at different levels – by the house and high on the ridge. Having an engorged stream raging behind the houses in NC was distinctive. There were undertones of water, but to me it sounded like two farm tractors with motors running.

I think, without exception, the weather after a hurricane in New York was glorious. The sun was strong in a bright blue sky. The distinctive sound of chainsaws was pervasive. On Long Island the trees were tall and thin, toothpick trees my dad used to call them. They would snap easily and always aimed to cause the most disruption by blocking roads.

The day after our recent storm, sounds were missing under gloomy skies. It was unnaturally quiet with no traffic on I-40. The road was closed because a bridge was out, and half the road had fallen into the Pigeon River at one point. On this street the silence demanded my attention. There was not a single chainsaw to be heard! Not one! I was not aware of any tree falling on this side of the mountain. Of course, I am very thankful the old oak tree stood its ground and dropped very few small branches.

I sit here writing about unimportant things, where only a mile away there is flood damage. Asheville was hard hit, and the number of deaths is still rising. If you pray, please include the people of Waynesville and Asheville. Thank you.

Unknown's avatar

Published by Anne Mehrling

I'm a retiree who loves to write about life in the mountains of North Carolina.

Published

31 thoughts on “Sounds of Hurricanes”

  5. It hurts me to hear that! Its not looking promising for our visit, but we will keep an eye on things. It’s probably going to be months before repairs and cleanup is done. I’m just happy you have such good people around you to help with whatever you might need.

    Like

    1. You probably should avoid this area for a while. I’ve seen photos of half the road gone in two places on I-40. The place where I take garbage reopened today. It’s close to the campground where you stayed. Bob said that place was a mess, with RVs scattered about.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. That’s sounded like two farm tractors with motors running. I never seen hurricane. I can pray for the people of Waynesville and Asheville. Thank you. I heard the contrast between the two storms.

    Tack care , Anne 😀!

    Like

  7. Your post brought back memories of Hurricane Camille. I was almost 5 when it hit Mississippi. The wind howled like a banshee and I got in bed with my grandmother. It was so scary.

    In the morning, large trees were down everywhere. The cows made it safely through the hurricane. The tin roofs and siding on the barns had been pulled off in many spots. I remember splashing through large puddles in my rubber boots and climbing on the downed trees.

    Like

  8. My sister told me that in her community they had to clear 12-15 trees from the private road before they could get to the main road. She also said the trees got bigger as they went. The last one was a huge oak. Lots of chain saws were running in their community. We continue to pray for everyone in the area.

    Like

  9. Anne, I have been praying that you remained safe during the hurricane. Reading this post gave me the answer. Asheville has been hard hit. Hope they can recover. Have a good weekend. oxox

    Like

  10. Good morning, Anne. I am back from my Texas trip and starting to catch up on things. I never thought about location impacting the hurricanes. That was most interesting, and I could picture it in my mind as you were writing. I love your dad’s “toothpick trees”!

    Like

    1. I talked with someone yesterday who lives no more than 10 miles from me. She doesn’t usually panic, but she said she was totally frightened by the wind. Trees are down everywhere in her neighborhood. There was not a single tree down on my mountain. Weird!

      Liked by 1 person

  11. You were lucky to be unscathed by Hurricane Helene Anne. Thank you for painting a picture for us of what you heard/saw.In my daily prayers I do ask God to take care of those who suffer from weather and war, among other things – the devastation was horrible from everything I’ve seen on social media (I no longer have cable).

    Like

      1. I have Amazon Prime, which I waver on whether to keep it or not as I don’t order that much, but they do give good discounts and you can find everything there it seems. I have watched two series (“Mad Men” and “Everwood”) and enjoyed them very much. But then about six months ago I could no longer watch anything. It said I lacked compatibility on the Windows 7 computer. Since I am on a higher platform, I did try a movie (“The Whale” which I did not care for at all) and it worked fine. I get the Peacock Channel with Comcast free or can pay $5.00 to be commercial-free, but there is not that much on there that grabs my interest. Like you and David, I got out of watching things on TV and don’t miss it and it’s expensive. It would be cheaper if I bundled because my internet is $121.00 a month and ATT charges me around $72.00 a month for my landline. I am undecided whether to keep it or not, but they raise the price every other month to force me to go to digital through them.

        Like

          1. That is amazing! I pay a ridiculous amount and AT&T calls all the time (I ignore them as I have caller I.D.) plus sends letters … I am probably the only person on the block with an AT&T landline and won’t go digital. Marge had Comcast digital landline and every time the Comcast goes out, the phone and cable would as well.

            Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.