SHTF IN North Dakota

[Bob F.]

Just received this e-mail ( if I can copy & paste?!?!) Moderators: if it's a duplicate, delete.



For those of you who are not aware, North Dakota and southwestern Montana

got hit with their first blizzard of the season a couple of weeks ago).

This text is from a bulletin update of a County Emergency Manager in western

North Dakota after the storm.





WEATHER BULLETIN



Up here in the Northern Plains we just recovered from an Historic event ---

may I even say a "Weather Event" of "Biblical Proportions". We had a

blizzard of up to 24" inches of snow and winds to 50 MPH that broke trees in

half. We had hundreds of stranded motorists in lethal snow banks, all

roads were closed, there were scores of isolated communities. and 10's of

thousands of people were left without power..



George Bush did not come....

FEMA staged nothing....

No one howled for the government or National Guard...

No one cursed on TV...

Nobody demanded $2,000 debit cards.....

No one asked for a FEMA Trailer House....

No news anchors moved in.



We just melted snow for water, sent out caravans to pluck people out of

snow engulfed cars, fired up wood stoves, broke out coal oil lanterns or

Aladdin lamps, and put on an extra layer of clothes.



Even though a Category "5" blizzard of this scale has never fallen this

early ... we know it can happen and how to deal with it ourselves.



Everybody is fine.

 

[CubDriver]

Interesting, not totally true, but not totally false.
http://www.snopes.com/katrina/soapbox/dakota.asp

 

[Shear_stress]

Good thing all eight residents of western North Dakota made it out okay

 

[Jacobus Rex]

I don’t think it is a good comparison. The quote says 50 mph winds. I don’t know about Katrina, but Rita had SUSTAINED 120 mph winds at my house. Gusts were even worse.

We probably lost more than a 100 trees on our place. The majority of them were between 20 to 120 years of age. So it was not an ordinary average storm. Thankfully, our house is strong and suffered no real damage.

Also, it is kind of hard to shovel water and snow won’t “run” into things.

 

[Bob F.]

Stress: all eight for sure!

JR: no argument; no comparison. I think the big problem on the Gulf is that some people STILL don't understand the magnitude of the damage. But I still liked the blizzard bulletin. Too many people all over the world have their hands out. In my area just the medicaid abuse is monumental. Just one of many examples. Not trying to ruffle feathers, just looking for a chuckle!

Stay safe, and prepared.
Bob

 

[Crosshair]

Thanks for taking one for the team peple that live in the Western part of ND.

/Lives in Eastern part of ND.

 

[Olys45]

I was on leave in Eastern Mt from Eastern ND between my assingments.

Miles City MT was with out power for most of one day. It was a bigger PITA with I-94 Eastbound being closed from Miles City than anything else. My spousal unit ended up going to Miles when the Interstate was closed and had to duck around the closure signs (I know, she was lucky she was not stopped, but the road was clear and she was only going to the next town) to get back to her parents house. The biggest impact was that I had to wait an extra day to get our truck fixed since the roads were bad and the power was out at the dealership!

 

[Stauble]

I don’t think it is a good comparison. The quote says 50 mph winds. I don’t know about Katrina, but Rita had SUSTAINED 120 mph winds at my house. Gusts were even worse.

same thing with wilma down here. im not trying to defend the unprepared people, but being in Florida we cant rally get snow to melt for water. after the hurricane the biggest thing down here was no drinking water, and no ice. snow for u guys solves both those problems. the maority of ppl down here have electric stoves (i do have a gas though) so unless they had a grill, then they couldnt cook hot foods. and after a few days with no ice, everything in the firdge goes bad.

so a hurricane and blizzard a bit different

 

[TallPine]

North Dakota and southwestern Montana got hit with their first blizzard of the season a couple of weeks ago

I think that would be southeastern Montana, as ND and SW MT are about 600 miles apart

It's been pretty nice here, as usual. We did have that heavy wet snow the first week of October that knocked the power out for most of 24 hrs.

 

[BozemanMT]

Look, I don't mean to be rude, or make light of anyone's suffering, but obviously, you southern folk have NEVER been in a blizzard.
Yeah, you might have to sleep outside cuz it's 90 degrees out, but you aren't going to die of exporsure, or lose your way back from the barn 30 feet away because you can't see or everything in the house freezes because it's 20 below 0 (50 below freezing) and the power is out, etc.
Few people die from a hurricane's afteraffects, many die from blizzards and the cold and exporsure, etc.

 

[mfree]

No water? Should have had some stored.
Bad food? Should have had emergency supplies.
Looters? Ought've had a firearm handy.
Cold temps? Should have prepared.

It's not the disaster, it's the preparation.

If there was a part of the country that every so often had the temperature dip to 60 below zero with 100+MPH winds, and people knew it and knew it for decades, and yet still built vulnerable structures or had no shelters, no blankets, no alternative heat sources, no stored food or water, no PREPERATION, then I may have pity for them but damned if I'll have any respect for them when that cold wind blows.

 

[Dienekes]

Nothing very new about winter storms up there. Was raised up there long before 4WD, reliable road reports, and cell phones. Sometimes wonder how I survived it, being young and dumb, but only got frostbitten really well once. (Still hurts now and then if my fingers get cold.)

As luck would have it I was just making my periodic run up to ND and dodging all that as best I could. Those winter trips up to ND are not to be taken lightly.

As the old saying goes, it keeps the undesirables away.

 

[grampster]

I noted that the cold or snow or wind split trees. Shouldn't that be tree, singular? I thought there was only one tree in ND.

PS: I'll gladly send you some oaks. I've got 21 of them on my homestead, and live in the middle of an oak forest. At least the snow has now covered up the leaves on the ground. I won't have to look at them till spring when I am replanting my lawn that the tanin in the leaves killed.

 

[slopemeno]

I spent 7 years in Great Falls Mt and the winters there were brutal. Summers were beautiful though. I dont miss shoveling the driveway, and the five foot berm of snow the plows kicked up overnite. It was so cold one winter my Mother broke the door hadle off our Dodge Coronet with one hand. Nothing like driving down the street with tires in shape of a 'D' until they warm up.

 

[psyopspec]

Shouldn't that be tree, singular? I thought there was only one tree in ND.

If there is, I have yet to see it.

Crosshair, what part of this great state of ours are you in? I'd invite you shooting, but after this part of the year I go less and less until cabin fever sets in after a few weeks. Then I'll brave whatever elements I have to for a range session, even if it means leaving the car running and reloading the mags in it to keep my trigger finger from falling off.

 

[Slateman]

I'm sorry, 24 inches in Dakota, anywhere in Dakota, is nothing compared to the flooding of New Orleans and Mississippi. Sorry, its just not.

1. Snow is less of a big deal. It can be moved with a snow plow/blower/shovel. Even here in northern VA, people would be able to get to a hospital within a day, and we're incompetent.

2. There was way more water than snow.

3. Snow does less damage. A flooded house destroys everything inside it save for items made of plastic or kevlar. What does 24 inches of snow do? Well it stays outside, for the most part. And you can build snowmen

4. Standing water breeds disease. Standing snow does not.

5. 24 inches is well . . . not normal, but . . . normal. I'll pretty much guarentee that you'll get that much again at some point. Heck, we've gotten more than that here. Katrina/Rita pretty much set records and will get into the Storm Hall of Fame.

But, yes, props to the citizens of North Dakota and Montana for taking care of their business. Things needed to be done and they did them. And did them while looking out for their neighbors.

 

[Moparmike]

Heh. I remember having 14" of snow here in NW Arkansas. Pandamonium is a good word... I was 16 and driving out in it, laughing at all the people going crazy and getting stuck in ditches because they did something patently stupid. Its even worse with the ice we get here. 1/2" ice covered by 1/2" of snow creates more havoc and chaos than any winter-precipitation south of Chicago/Boston. Only Dallas icestorms have more of a chaotic effect.

Ever passed a 4wd Suburban pointed uphill in the oncoming lane when you too were going up hill in the correct lane? He was sliding backwards with all 4 tires spinning. It was at that instant that my car started to fishtail, halfway up. But I made it...with the help of my good friend Mr. Mo Mentum.



It didn't really have much of an effect on us though. We still went to work. Although, we would have been in quite a pickle if the power had gone out.

 

[wolfeyes]

My daughter lives in Hattiesburg with her husband.They had 4 hours of 100 mph sustained winds.At least two dozen tornados,and about 12 inches of rain. The coast of course was much worse.She was raised in Lake of the Woods County Minnesota.Said -40 and 40mph wind was childs play....jh

 

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

same thing with wilma down here. im not trying to defend the unprepared people, but being in Florida we cant rally get snow to melt for water. after the hurricane the biggest thing down here was no drinking water, and no ice. snow for u guys solves both those problems. the maority of ppl down here have electric stoves (i do have a gas though) so unless they had a grill, then they couldnt cook hot foods. and after a few days with no ice, everything in the firdge goes bad.

so a hurricane and blizzard a bit different

This isn't about which natural disaster is worse. It's about how people react to adversity.

It isn't hard to provide the basic necessities of life, even during a hurricane or a flood. But it requires hard work and and self-reliance. Most of the huricane victims showed an alarming lack of both.

The hardy folks in Montana or North Dakota or wherever wouldn't wait around for FEMA to (fail to) provide all of their needs. They would take care of themselves. THAT is what this is all about.

 

[Jeff in ND]

Yep. 'twas bad here during that storm. wasn't cold, tho.. I mean, yeah, cold as in a huge absence of heat I got stuck 5 times with my car (IN TOWN) - jest driving to a friend's home(about a mile) to stay, as travel home (10 miles outta town - in the country) woulda been a recipient of the Darwin Award..but power was out for 24.5 hrs, where I'm at. We knew it was a comin like a day or so before..so we got candles, blankets, extra clothes, more food than usual, lots of extra water, an extra carton of smokes...No big deal..If it'd been COLD, shtuff woulda been dire. Even PROPANE freezes, and nobody's prepared for that. pipes woulda bust, windows crack, cars just don't run when it's 50 below with a 40 mph wind. (the chart I got doesn't go that low, but according to science, it's what your skin feels like it is if it's around 95 degrees below zero.) Anyone who tries to tell me that windchill doesn't affect vehicular performance (or lack thereof) doesn't live here, or has his head up [in someplace warm]

I can't imagine a floodin like you guys got. But, last summer Souris (near where I live) got over 14" of rainfall and flooded the whole town. Same deal, w/out the wind..wrecked a bunch of crap. They asked FEMA, but still haven't heard from them. No money there, yaknow..(or voters?)

I lived in deep east Taxas for a spell, and it was okay.. ne'er had no hurricanes, but saw tornadoes that made ours look like dust devils...Rained every dang day I was there..(my feet are STILL wet)

Wx has its bad moment anywhere, and people either prepare or they don't. When they don't, or do and get smashed anyhow, they ask for help. They get it if there's enough People there. (READ: DOLLAR AMOUNT) - it has nothing to do with percentage of damage.

 

[Olys45]

I think that would be southeastern Montana, as ND and SW MT are about 600 miles apart

Yep your right... I had a blond moment going on right then... :banghead: I'm not even blond!