On Monday, Labor Day, I got to experience what a hurricane is like... at least for 45 minutes or so.

A heavy thunderstorm rolled in, spawned a funnel cloud about 2 miles from Pond Central (though it thankfully didn't touch down), and dumped up to 10 inches of rain. In 45 minutes. Throw in sustained winds of 45 mph (972,451 kilohertz per hour for my Overseas readers), with occasional gusts of 70-75 mph (2,387,563 - 4,522,895.391 kiloergs per shake), and it was, at some moments, exactly like a low-level hurricane.

To say that The Pond was choppy would be an understatement. There was a lot of flooding around here. A few of the major streets were flooded (the town of Duckford is built on rolling terrain), and there was pretty impressive video footage of cars up to their windshields in water at a couple of local mall parking lots.

Duck U., despite the flooding all around it, seemed to have escaped even minor damage... until this morning. The local flood abatement zone sits just to the north of the U., and as the water drained into it from all around, the level rose to record levels. Reports reached me at the Duck U. Bookstore that it was 'lapping overtop of the dam'.

Now, I've lived in Duckford for 30 years. That just didn't seem possible to me... and then the power went out. And stayed out. The Duck U. Physical Plant left a message on the campus phone system (which only about 40% of the phones was able to get, due to they way they're connected; fortunately the Bookstore's phone was one of the lucky 40%) first saying "the power could be restored by noon." It was 930am.

The local power company people must have disabused them of that notion, for around 1015am, the word came down: Duck U. is closed for the day. "They have no idea when the power'll be back on."

So... I get another day added to my Labor Day weekend! Whee!

I've lived in The Pond for six years, and I've NEVER seen a rain like that. There was water hitting the front door, which doesn't sound like much of a much, but considering that it's down a covered hallway, about 30 feet from the portal to nature? THAT's impressive, and it's never happened before.

We even made the Today show. Al Roker talked about the flooding Duckburg suffered! We's famous!

I mean, still famous, since a well-known and influential guitar-rock band is from here. *heh* Which one? I'm not tellin', but Bun E. knows...

Posted by: Wonderduck at 09:03 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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