The Biggest Blizzard Ever

Source: thetelegram.com

All over Canada, everyone heard about the Snowmageddon, the biggest, fastest dump of snow that ever happened, that anyone living could ever remember.

I live in St. John’s, Newfoundland Labrador, and only our neighbour city Mt. Pearl got more snow than we did, though that was not a statistic anyone would really value.

Source: imgur.comThe mayor declared an “SOE” – a state of emergency, and called upon the armed forces to help us.  We were on “The National” every night, on the news every day, and every bit of attention was merited, for although the amount of snow was truly overwhelming in reality more than imagination, what came through was a people’s ability to turn a disaster into an adventure.

The first time I stepped out into the storm, I was blown over by the 120-km/hr winds, lying on the hardened snow, like a turtle unable to roll over.  At our house, it took an hour just to dig the snow blower out from under an 8-foot high snowdrift.

It took the rest of the day for all of us to dig out a path to the driveway and then to the street.  Even then, our street was blocked with snow higher than my waist.  We snowshoed to my father’s house, normally a ten-minute walk away.

Anne, Mike’s wife, and her trusty snow blower.

His garage door was completely buried by a snowdrift 12 feet high.  My daughter Kathryn snowshoed up to his front door and dug the 5-foot drift away from the front door so we could make sure he was ok.

The city reminded me of the ending of an old Planet of the Apes movie where Charlton Heston discovers New York City buried from an ancient nuclear disaster, only the top of the Statue of Liberty showing.  There was so much nothing happening.

My colleagues and friends who were stuck in the hospitals braved it for 36 hours steady.  Babies continued to born, emergency surgeries continued.

My daughter Lesley working in Carbonear an hour away from St. John’s, covered anesthesia call for 86 hours, staying in the hospital during the peak of the storm.

Mike’s car on it’s way to being buried by the snow.

It is a trait of this very hardy people to follow the Nike swoosh, but with a touch of Mary Poppins, “just do it”, “with an element of fun.”  Everyone shared the load of shovelling and snow blowing family, friends and neighbours, especially those who couldn’t do it for themselves.

Snowdrifts became refrigerators.  Huge piles of snow became snow forts, of which many were elaborate.  The braver sorts used the snow as a one and only chance to snowboard down the steep hills so characteristic of downtown.

Our neighbours down the street started a campfire for the kids at the corner of Roche Street and First Avenue.  It started with S’mores and roasted marshmallows, and then came Coronas and Miller Lites; and then it was “red or white” and the tinkling of wine glasses, lawn chairs, and a party that went on for hours.

As comedian Mark Critch remarked, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians make you wish you could be there to share their disaster.  Thank goodness we got the fun in before the snowplow finally showed up that night, to cheers, and loud thank-you’s, and Pepsis handed aboard.

The famous bonfire!

When the supermarkets and grocery stores opened, over a thousand people lined up at one of the inner city ones, patiently waiting for their turn to go in.  Not everyone did, or could afford, to stock up.

Taxis gave free rides to anyone who needed it.  When one driver being interviewed was asked why he was doing that, he replied “Well, why wouldn’t you?”  People here rose to the occasion in a way that “restored his faith in humanity”, one journalist commented.

Mike with his daughters Kathryn and Jenny

 

 

Turning a disaster into an adventure – it is the same phenomenon as 911.  An adventure story of generosity, faith in the goodness of the other, trust in knowing that it will all work out, so it’s right to smile.

This people can be so good at showing the divine that we all hold within.

I love living here.

(Unless indicated all photos are courtesy of the author)

Dr. Michael Bautista is a physician practising in St. John's and is the recipient of the 2015 Ignatian Spirit Award from St. Bonaventure's. He is also the Chair of the Discipline of Anesthesia at Memorial University. and an associate professor of Medicine.

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5 Comments
  • Sharon Walters
    Posted at 09:25h, 03 February Reply

    We often forget “the divine that we all hold within”. Thank you for the reminder.

  • Maria Skarzynski
    Posted at 11:41h, 03 February Reply

    It made us all stand in awe and cheer all the wonderful people, the spirit, the help to all who needed help !! I have always loved Nova Scotians/Labradorians/Newfoundlanders – Mind you Albertans (especially the young) during the flood of 2013 were awesome also !!

  • Peter Bisson
    Posted at 14:01h, 03 February Reply

    Thank you Mike!

  • Esther Buckley
    Posted at 18:37h, 03 February Reply

    Thank you Mike for your excellent description of ‘Snowmagetton ‘- what a lot of snow !! Thanks to Ann , Jenny and Kathryn for clearing our front and back doors that were blocked with snow . You were all quite busy and then walked up to your father’s house to make sure he was ok.
    Yes the blizzard was an adventure and showed how resilient we are — it put NL on the map ha .
    The ‘Snow Party ‘ down the street was a great idea, enjoyed by children ,dogs and adults. My sister and I couldn’t get there but saw it all on FB.
    The blizzard certainly brought out the best in everyone
    Many neighbours called to see if we needed anything and that was very much appreciated .
    Again you wrote a beautiful blog as you always do.
    We have a great neighbourhood here and I wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t come to my assistance twice in the past . Thank you.
    Hope Leslie gets in from Carbonear and has a much needed rest.
    God bless you and your family.❄️❄️❄️❄️☃️
    PS The photos are lovely —certainly shows all the snow that fell

  • Elaine Lalonde
    Posted at 18:33h, 07 February Reply

    That was wonderful to a bad time ended in enjoyment.Thank Y ou nice review of the storm.

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