Human nature shows its true colours, good or bad, when Mother Nature huffs and puffs and blows everything down.
It felt a little like Kansas in Langley on Saturday with wind gusts reaching 90 km/h. It was the perfect storm, really, with the summer drought leaving the ground dry as dust. By mid-day Saturday, huge trees had been uprooted, houses damaged, roads closed with live wires hanging precariously. Power was out at traffic lights and in people’s homes.
A number of Times’ readers submitted photos, showing just how much destruction Mother Nature is capable of doing.
Turns out, we mere mortals, when faced with the biggest wind storm in nine years, can get pretty stupid, pretty fast.
One video posted online shows northbound 200 Street blocked with cones because of a fallen tree. Instead of drivers turning onto other routes, many chose to drive into oncoming traffic to get to their destination.
Despite police asking people to stay off Langley’s roads if possible, many decided to head out anyway, often getting caught in traffic tie-ups, while emergency crews worked tirelessly to remove the hazards.
Langley RCMP report that 911 was tied up all day with people calling about the power outage, after BC Hydro’s website collapsed under the pressure.
Others decided a wind storm was the perfect time to take their kids or little dogs out for a walk on trails or near heavily wooded areas.
I watched in awe as one parent brought kids outside while branches fell like javelins from the sky. Our neighbour’s tree fell on our fence, damaging it extensively and adding new landscaping to our backyard.
The damage to people’s home and property is extensive. It will be a costly clean-up.
At the same time, we’ve been hearing many good stories of neighbours helping neighbours and strangers coming to clear roads, bringing chainsaws and clearing away tree debris. The loss of mature trees, from maples and cherry to tall cottonwoods is devastating.
It seems Langley and Surrey took the brunt of the lengthy power outages with thousands of people without electricity for more than 48 hours, losing all the perishables in their fridges and deep freezes.
The event provided another look into how we react to natural disasters (for lack of a better description). Line-ups at restaurants and drive-throughs were long, with many people relying on eateries to feed them hot food.
Gas stations closed because they had no power, leaving drivers stranded and residents with no way to run generators.
Many on wells in Langley found themselves camping out at the homes of family or friends, just so they could have running water.
How we reacted to the storm is a good example of how unprepared we are for any natural disaster.
Mother Nature is unpredictable and can pounce at any time.
Let the aftermath of this storm be a telling tale and let’s give our emergency preparedness another look.