It’s always a bit breezy in the Bay, but not like that! Hurricane Fiona was well predicted, and in hindsight – we were well prepared, but, nothing really prepares you to ride out a Hurricane!
We fared out reasonably well all things considered! Much tree damage and loss, some shingles that needed replacing, and some indoor mop-ups from the Bay facing windows that didn’t keep the rains out, but it could have been worse!
We were four in the house – myself and Rodger, and we had 2 Inn guests from Manhattan, who couldn’t get a flight out. At 2 am, whatever was happening outside, it was loud enough to wake us all up, and that was it for rest that night! The winds were so loud it was like a freight train running through the house… and it kept up for 24 hours……. We abandoned upstairs bedrooms and retreated to the south side of the house (owners quarters), and took up the couch, armchair, and a cot in the kitchen (close to the beer drawer Rodger pointed out!)
When morning light came were were shocked to see mature trees down all over, just missing the house by inches – and these were probably 100+ years old – tumbled over at the roots! We were fortunate that we had just installed a generlink (generator) two weeks prior, something we were working on before the hurricane forecast, so although we were 5 or 6 days without power (it’s a blur!), we were able to stay warm, shower, and cook. Our internet remained stable for about 6 hours the next day, and we had a glimpse of the surroundings via Facebook, and to check in on friends, let family know were were ok , with text and FB, then internet went down. Unless the generator was on and CBC radio was tuned it, it was a closed environment with little info. For a week we didn’t venture farther than about 5 km, so what a shock to us, as we drove to Charlottetown airport a week later to return to Ontario for a family wedding , to see the damage on that drive….
We remain grateful that no lives were lost on the Island – it was one for the history books in my view!
