At 4:51 a.m. this morning, I awoke to sheet lightning illuminating the dark morning sky. The rumble and light was constant. I wasn’t the only one who had heard it. I heard the trailer door shut. It was Callan going outside to gather some feed that had been left out.
The rain started and Callan came back in drenched. I called Skylar on his phone, who was sleeping in the Common House and asked him to try to pull up the doppler on the computer when the rain subsided enough to let the signal through. He was supposed to be getting up to go to work, but I was hesitant for the boys to leave in such dangerous weather. Knowing what the doppler showed would help make that decision to go or stay.
Finally there was a lull in the rain. Based on the doppler, Skylar thought it would pass in about 20 minutes. At least that’s what he thought. So the guys got up and got ready for work. But the lull was short, along with the internet service, and the rain got harder and harder and harder. They were supposed to leave by 6 am. It was now 7:15 and they’d not left. Another lull. They decided to give it a go in the 4wd truck.
A few minutes later they were back. The wet weather creek was running fast and furious across the driveway. There are actually 2 creeks with a hump in the middle at the bottom of the driveway. When the hump is not visible, we know its too deep to pass. The hump was not visible, so they returned and texted their boss to tell them they weren’t going to make it out today. I am so very thankful they did not get out as they would not be making it back in anytime today and we were going to need their help at home.
The Flood Waters as They Cross Our Driveway
Everyone went back to bed but most didn’t sleep. The rain, thunder and lightning returned with a vengeance. We had goats in a temporary pen due to Leah dying of a toxic plant in the pasture last week. The goats broke down their temporary shelter so they had no shelter from the storm. I couldn’t stop thinking of them out there in the storm. And then there were the meat birds we were planning on butchering on Saturday who had been put into a temporary pen so we could take their fencing to finish the temporary pen for the goats we were trying to keep from getting poisoned in the pasture. They were getting wet. I think there’s a “temporary” theme going on here. And the rabbits……we weren’t sure if they were staying dry or not.
The rain, wind, a little bit of hail, and thunder and lightning continued with occasional lulls. Light dawned, the rain lulled, and we got up to check on the animals.
We found a hidden litter of kittens yesterday in the ashes in our wood burning stove. We had moved the dirty kittens to a large dog kennel on the deck never thinking it was going to rain. We rescued them from the water logged dog carrier and blow dried them warm and dry. Poor kittens went from suffocating in ashes to drowning in water in less than 24 hours. They’re safe now.
We found wet rabbits. We brought them in and started blow drying them and putting them in boxes and rubbermaid tubs inside until the rain abated and they could safely return to their cages.
Callan discovered that the meat birds were all in trouble. We moved our Saturday butchering day up to Friday Flood Day. We’ve had problems with these meat birds this year for some unknown reason. They’ve not grown well. They’re supposed to grow fast and furious and reach 6-9 lbs in 6 weeks. We were well beyond the 6 weeks and they were still on the smallish side. These birds are prone to heart attacks as they age because they grow so fast. They didn’t grow fast so we hadn’t had any heart problems. The stress of the rain brought it on instead.
Callan would run out into the rain, catch two birds, which is not hard when they’re on the verge of heart attacks. She’d slit their throat and put them near the Common House to drain. We cleared the kitchen sink and counters and started skinning and cleaning the birds in the kitchen sink and on trash bag lined counters. I have been soooooo thankful for our kitchen sink with hot and cold running water and our cabinets and counter tops too. But never so thankful as this morning. If we had not had our sink with running water and cabinets and countertops, we would have lost all of our efforts in raising these birds.
Ryker madly sharpened knives. Galilee got the ice chests cleaned out with salted ice water ready for icing the birds in a few days. This allows the rigor mortis enzyme to dissipate and makes the meat chewable and not like hard rubber. Callan was the executioner. The rest cleaned and gutted birds. We finished the job and the birds are safely cooling on ice.
The 5th wheel has reverted from the Mayflower back to the Speedwell. It is leaking from stem to stern. Water was coming out of the a/c duct onto my feet in bed. I left it this morning with a trash can to collect the dripping water. Then we discovered leaks over Ryker’s bed. And leaks in the bunk room end. We started moving all valuables out of the trailer. Larissa worked on rehoming the good books and their bookshelf into the Common House.
We moved all the musical instruments out of the trailer too. The Common House is quickly filling up beyond our comfort level.
But what’s comfort when we’re in the midst of numerous emergencies? Not to mention how very, very, very, very, very, need I say very, THANKFUL we are to have the Common House right now????? We would never, ever have weathered this storm today in the tent. We would have lost every one of those meat birds today had we not had the kitchen sink, running water and counters under shelter on which to process them. We would have been sitting in a sieve of a trailer because the tent would not have been safe with the very dangerous lightning that cracked so sharply around us.
The rain let up around 1:30 p.m. This storm was eerily similar to the floods of the Summer of 2007. Only we received more rain this flood in a little more time. There’s another post on the other floods of the Summer of 2007 here. In those posts you can see some other pictures of our driveway when it’s rained 7″-10+”. And, you can see another picture of the raised bridge pictured below a little more under water. And a picture of the road where the creek crosses our road to the south. Water, water, everywhere.
Our driveway is only passable with 4wd. The boys brought our only 4wd vehicle home with less than 1/8th of a tank of diesel when they drove it on Wednesday. Great timing!!!! Not!!!!!! There is no way the van or Honda will get down the driveway right now.
We cannot get out as the swollen wet weather creek has us surrounded. I’m sure the road to the north of us is washed away not to mention that the low water crossings are probably 8′ deep in water right now.
This is the Raised Bridge to the North
This is Our Road
The fences on both sides of our property were mowed down by the water. This allowed the two cows to head on over to new pastures on our neighbor’s property. They’re now behind lock and key in the temporary goat shelter.
We’ve Got Fencing Work to Do
Lord willing we will be able to get out tomorrow to the south to get diesel, hay (we’re down to 1/2 bale of hay with all of the animals penned right now…….Do you think this will teach the children to let me know before we get so low that we need hay? One can only hope and pray!) And we need tarps for the trailer. And milk. The Jersey is dry and our only doe in milk is nursing her own doeling plus the orphaned buckling left behind by Leah. So, milk is on my shopping list again.
There’s more rain in the forecast.
It’s been quite a day. Did I say that we received 10.5″ of rain in approximately 7 hours?
Now, what to do about dry mattresses and bedding for tonight………………
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