Ice Storm '13

2

Comments

  • We did a little drive within City limits today. First time I have seen my nephews and nieces in some time. Trees decimated all over the City (I am going to guesstimate 60% losses), but the roads were clear. People were, for the most part, actually following the rules v. no power at traffic signals. Shocking . . .
  • Power back on after being off for 10 hours. Feel very fortunate.
  • Still no power at my house in Richmond Hill since 2am on Sunday. What the fuxk?
  • pokerJAH wrote: »
    Still no power at my house in Richmond Hill since 2am on Sunday. What the fuxk?

    I think there was an ice storm
  • Milo wrote: »
    We did a little drive within City limits today. First time I have seen my nephews and nieces in some time. Trees decimated all over the City (I am going to guesstimate 60% losses), but the roads were clear. People were, for the most part, actually following the rules v. no power at traffic signals. Shocking . . .

    60% loss of trees? Sounds high?
  • GTA Poker wrote: »
    I think there was an ice storm

    Why so long to fixxy? During the blackout, we were up in less than 24 hours. Hopefully back by the time I get back tomorrow.
  • pokerJAH wrote: »
    Still no power at my house in Richmond Hill since 2am on Sunday. What the fuxk?
    pokerJAH wrote: »
    Why so long to fixxy? During the blackout, we were up in less than 24 hours. Hopefully back by the time I get back tomorrow.

    i heard it may take up to 72 hours to restore power in some areas.
  • theres still like 200k homes out, my uncle has had no power for so long now who knows when it will be back for everybody.
  • That's a lot of people to still be without considering how many of them were likely not prepared for it whatsoever.
  • GTA Poker wrote: »
    60% loss of trees? Sounds high?

    Actually, I was being conservative. Remember, just because the tree is not on the ground, doesn't mean it won't have to be removed.
    pokerJAH wrote: »
    Why so long to fixxy? During the blackout, we were up in less than 24 hours. Hopefully back by the time I get back tomorrow.

    Your neighbourhood might not be in a priority area. They have a triage system for what get fixed first . . . apparently you ain't on it.
    trigs wrote: »
    i heard it may take up to 72 hours to restore power in some areas.

    Yup, but those times will likely drop as crews from other jurisdictions to help. Still not any fun if you're cold.
  • That's a lot of people to still be without considering how many of them were likely not prepared for it whatsoever.

    +1 reason for having a real Xmas tree you can burn.
  • Was in my Credit Union today, after removing the inch thick coating of ice from my Dad's car. Could not believe a woman actually wondered aloud, "When do you think the City will come and cut down what is left of my tree?"

    Excuse me? It's your tree, it's YOUR responsibility . . . I mean, if it is on the municipal Right of Way, sure. But this woman was talking about damage to her shed, so I am assuming it is in her backyard. When did we become so reliant on government to hold our hands?

    I have already said that, for the GTA, I have never seen an ice storm of this size in my lifetime. But this is far from being a natural disaster, though the trees may feel differently. I mean, have there been any reported deaths as a result of falling branches? Due to power loss? So far, all I have heard about in terms of "losses" is just money. We got lots of money around here . . . hell, our Government is pissing it away by the BILLIONS, so I guess it is no wonder that Suzy homemaker wants the City to make it all better for her . . .

    \end rant.
  • Milo wrote: »

    I have already said that, for the GTA, I have never seen an ice storm of this size in my lifetime. But this is far from being a natural disaster, though the trees may feel differently. I mean, have there been any reported deaths as a result of falling branches? Due to power loss? So far, all I have heard about in terms of "losses" is just money. We got lots of money around here . . . hell, our Government is pissing it away by the BILLIONS, so I guess it is no wonder that Suzy homemaker wants the City to make it all better for her . . .

    \end rant.

    I agree. People are calling it a "state of emergency" I shutter to think what they would do if it was an actual emergency.

    FWIW the roads were great yesterday and today, nobody on them!

    Sidestreets are a gong show, but that will take some time.
  • Pussification of Canada? I guess if we don't win Gold in Sweden it will be true . . .
  • Days entertainment was watching the recycle truck spend 10 minutes trying to get up our street. Getting out and hand collecting the remaining six houses would have been faster.
  • Power never went out where I live(Peterborough). Roads were fine when I went to work this morning... Mind you there is a huge demand for salt, and the whole region is sold out lol. Had at least 30 customers coming in asking for salt,which we didn't have lol.

    It gets interesting when you have to salt around the whole Home Depot building with just one 20kg bag of salt!
  • Some people may be without power until the weekend.

    Please people, don't do stuff like this:

    http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/carbon-monoxide-poisoning-in-ice-storm-blackout-leaves-2-dead-1.2475225
  • Some people may be without power until the weekend.

    Please people, don't do stuff like this:

    Carbon monoxide poisoning in ice storm blackout leaves 2 dead - Toronto - CBC News

    i still remember the one story from a few years ago about an older man who was venting into his basement (possibly a generator, i can't remember the specifics). he passed out and died down there. his wife went looking for him so she went down and passed out and died. later on, one of their daughters came looking for them. she went down and died as well. a second daughter eventually found them all. so nuts.
  • Darwin wins again...

    Mark
  • Stay safe out there erry body. (and inside as well...holy heck the number of people burning charcoal and running gennies inside is just shocking)

    Near Lake ontario all of the ice melted in the thaw the day after. once you get 10 Km from the lake it's still solid, 20K away and it's turned into an treetop war zone. Wondering how when to attack all the downed branches when more are still coming down and the ground is a 3 inch sheet of ice most of which is sloped.

    Anyone have any advice on how to get a tree frozen to the house unstuck? fun one where a maple has squatted down in all directions, a few 3-5 inch limbs have cracked off and frozen to the roof along with some still attached branches. Luckily the trunk is still solid as that is a crazy amount of weight if it goes.

    Wish I had some crampons.
  • Cut any overhanging portions away, leaving only the "frozen" portion on the roof. Roof should not be negatively affected by the weight. Weekend temps will rise above freezing . . . remove it then.
  • Milo wrote: »
    Cut any overhanging portions away, leaving only the "frozen" portion on the roof. Roof should not be negatively affected by the weight. Weekend temps will rise above freezing . . . remove it then.


    If I remember correctly your are in Brampton? We went up there yesterday for some gifting (M section) and it was like a winter tornado went thru. Much more tree devastation than where we are (beaches)
    Felt like Russian roulette trying to find street parking with so many branches ready to fall


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
  • If I remember correctly your are in Brampton? We went up there yesterday for some gifting (M section) and it was like a winter tornado went thru. Much more tree devastation than where we are (beaches)
    Felt like Russian roulette trying to find street parking with so many branches ready to fall


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

    Bramalea . . . just like the "M" section. Yes, just like every other "older" area affected by this storm, our neighbourhood enjoyed a large tree canopy. Owners that trimmed out their trees still lost portions of them, but the damage was less severe, and their homes were not at risk. Minor damage only, like we have. It is the owners who have let their trees go wild that have suffered the most severe losses, both in terms of their trees as well as their homes. Combine that with the fact that the oldest sections of Brampton and Bramalea still have overhead power lines, and you have the perfect recipe for what is going on right now.

    If the flurries stop, I'll be trimming up some of the downed debris this afternoon. The plan is to have it ready for when the City decides how we are going to get rid of residential debris. The trunks will be left for my "tree guy" to deal with when the weather improves.


    Pro tip - have an arborist look at your trees every five years or so, even if it is just to tell you what to cut. Sounds like an unnecessary expense, but this weekend shows you why it pays.
  • Most of the trees on my uncles street had been marked earlier on for removal. ( elm or ash- I can't remember) this coming spring/summer. This seems to have expedited the process and if the provincial govt is aiding in the storm clean up, might save municipal dollars as these were going to be taken down anyway.
    Silver lining, maybe ?
    Otherwise, I wish you the best in your efforts.



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  • I am one of those who are still without power going on day 5. I am in east Scarborough in an older area and trees and power poles are down.

    I feel the need to make a trip report.

    Maybe power will be restored tommorow as it is snowing and that will slow the repair crews down.
  • According to Newstalk1010 Toronto Hydro is now concentrating heavily on Scarborough and Guildwood in particular, as other areas of the City seem to be under control / progressing smoothly.

    Good luck.
  • Hydro crews are now in the area. Maybe for tomorrow. Surviving by sharing a generator with the niebours two hours a day and rotating.
  • Keep those exhaust fumes away from the house . . . jeez, you don't want to make the papers that way . . .
  • Power is on! 2 hours short of 5 full days.

    It really shows how dependent we are on electricity. I have an electric car too and it has been parked for 2 days.

    Glad it's over for us and I hope others get their power back soon.

    Heading to Fallsview in the morning to play satellites.
  • RAM_Eh wrote: »
    It really shows how dependent we are on electricity.

    Very true. A few years ago, the power went out here for several days straight. We lived in a crummy rental with poor insulation and the temperature was continuing to drop in the house. We had enough food to manage for a few days, but when we eventually decided to jump ship and evacuate we realized we didn't have enough fuel in the car to get out of town. On top of that there was no guarantee the fuel pumps were working in the next town either.

    Felt pretty trapped.
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