Now, the cleanup starts
Going forward, it will be about the trees. The hurricane wasn’t gentle, and across the province, the landscape has something new. Gaps. The chainsaw is the tool of this week.
To be fair, we (speaking as landowners), escaped. I have one branch out of place.
As you head west, the damaged and downed count for mature trees climbs quickly. In the National Park (where they actually count the trunks), damage is significant. Cavendish has closed their campground for the rest of the year. In the city, yard after yard now has firewood, even if they don’t have a fire pit.
Someone posted a picture of a red oak, planted following Hurricane Juan (in 2003). Didn’t survive. Snapped off by fierce breezes. I don’t know if there’ll be a replacement plan in place. Government priorities change. Another photo showed the view across a field to the horizon. The trees are now gone.
And of course, shorelines are changed. What should have taken a decade required but a single evening. The “strengthened” edge below West Point Lighthouse is now in need of serious rocks.
Most schools can open tomorrow, unless the lights are still off. Some will be burning candles through the weekend. Forget their winter freezer stocks. At a certain point, a genny makes economic sense, and the number of queries over the how big and how much are up in the forums. From my point of view, this is a trial run. Next time…
I believe in the science of climate change. No we didn’t invite hurricanes, but they’re rare around here. I can’t build a wall and pretend that the problem has been resolved.
