Ontario got partially hit by this system. Chatam Ontario sawa few semi trailers turned over. Up here in Ottawa, its a bit breezy but nothing worth noting. I grew up in the Maritimes and wind was a daily occurance.
TLS.. How did you fare?
Once day broke and I surveyed there were some problems.
I decided it was time to winterize my venerable 1988 Suburban 6.2 Lt diesel. This vehicle is close to mint, and drives like the day it left the factory. However this vehicle is now turning heads so I probably should not use it as much on the winter.
Anyhow I did not feel like grovelling in my shop, so I scrounged the use of a lift from Lowell Raditz owner of Lowell's Tire and oil at Kabekona. Kabekona is smaller than Benedict and just Has Lowell's Tire and oil and the Antique Peddler.
So as I get on my way, I see there are a number of small tree limbs scattered about. But a close look into the forest shows quite a few trees uprooted.
Close to the end of the 1/2 mile private road I maintain, Ladyslipper drive, there is a small patch on the edge of the forest that has all the trees down and two fur trees lying across Ladyslipper. Since I'm in my heavy duty Suburban (not like the new ones, which a low duty) I can drive around them. It looks as if there was a small patch of tornadic activity at that location.
There is a brisk wind and pretty heavy rain, ice and snow with some reduced visibility. On the higher ground at Laporte, 6 miles away, it is all snow and it is at Kabekona 16 miles away.
On the way back it was heavier. After I got back, I hopped on the old John Deere Model A, headed down Ladyslipper and pushed the trees back in the woods. The big tree must have missed the power line by the thinnest of whiskers. The old A moved the large tree with not a fuss and with very little throttle. Marvelous old tractor that. It was cold enough I was very glad I put on the comfort covers on Friday. I was soon good and warm from the engine heat.
Now it is blowing hard from the NW with light snow on and off and its getting colder.
I guess this event has been called a
bomb cyclone. Just north of here they recorded the lowest barometric pressure ever recorded in Minnesota. The readings I was getting yesterday were so low I was disbelieving and I re calibrated my barometer. The reading at Big Fork Lake came in at a low of 28.04 inches of mercury. The lowest reading I had here yesterday was around 28.5 inches of Mercury. Those are levels associated with class category 3 hurricanes and cyclones. So this event really was a massive inland hurricane.
The lowest barometric readings I had previously were during the huge four day snow storm over the last Christmas holiday.
This was certainly an interesting and very unusual weather event.
