Wind and Upcoming Rain

So there is a high wind advisory for us through tomorrow.  I wasn’t too concerned as the previous wind advisories in this storm didn’t materialize for us, but definitely did for Whatcom County.  But there is also rain forecast for tomorrow with no real melting temperatures prior to that.  So we are really concerned about added weight to our snow covered roofs.  Here is some of the icy snow sliding off the hay loft roof.

So Tom raked the lower portions of the barn roofs off as best he could.

I tried to help by using a large broom to clear the snow near the hay loft windows.  This is the result of some of our work.  We certainly decreased the weight on the roof.  We are especially worried about this roof as there is not much slope to it, and the snow from the hayloft will drop onto this roof, further adding to the weight.

But I mostly did animal chores while Tom worked on the roofs.  The donkeys seem to be weathering the storm OK in the pig shelter.  They have nice bedding and are eating well.

While feeding the donkeys I noticed the wind gauge looking pretty with the snow and the sky.

Here is a closer look.  This was a gift from long ago and is still standing up to the weather.

I am less concerned about the cows.  They are no longer frosty and are eating hay well.  They seem to be weathering it well too.

I keep shoveling snow into the deicer container so we always have some water.  We have not lost power yet but certainly could.  Many people I know have, and it makes life so much harder in these conditions.  I am trying to stay prepared.

Tom then worked on the east side of the barn (where the netting had collapsed).  This was more complicated as there are frozen gutter there.  But he managed to carefully rake off some snow without damaging the gutters.

Here is the snow piled up from his efforts on the west side (where the tarp shelter collapsed on our farm equipment).

On the way back to the house I admired the even larger icicles of the southeast corner of our house.  As pretty as they are, we need to take them down before they take our gutter down.  (Tom later took them down and thinks they weighted 50-60#)

Here is the views from our dining room front window.  The icicles keep coming back.  (Sorry, the camera fell in the snow and now has a water drop on the lens).

And then the winds that were predicted came.  They are coming from the east and are cold.  The unfortunate thing for us is that it is blowing on trees that are loaded down with icy snow.  The hope is that the wind will knock the snow off and reduce the weight so the trees don’t come down rather than just knock the trees over.  During this video there was a large chunk of snow coming off the tree to the right.

 

Here is one tree I am worrying about.  It is leaning to the east so I am hopeful since the wind is coming from that direction.  If it falls, it will likely block our driveway.

The other one I am concerned about is this one.  If it falls it may fall on the garage or it might fall on the cargo trailer and my stuck car (Tom had to drive me to and from work).

So that is what is going on here.  I worked last night so am taking it easy this afternoon in front of the Rose Bowl game.  But I am hearing chunks of snow bouncing off the east window next to me.  Not very comforting and worrying about tomorrow’s rain and possible roof collapses is not helping.  Thoughts and prayers are appreciated for us and everyone else battling this storm.  Also thoughts and prayers for Colorado’s fire victims.

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6 Responses to Wind and Upcoming Rain

  1. Oh Donna, I hope you guys weather this change with no more damage!

    • Donna says:

      So our back porch roof is leaking quite badly. No other new damage to report yet. But it is still raining and windy. This is getting old.

  2. Jeanne says:

    I really agree with Michelle! You and Tom don’t need that kind of weather! We’ll be praying for better weather, and no damage to buildings or vehicles.

    We think we’re having nasty weather here, with temps below freezing, and another snowstorm predicted for tomorrow. Yours is much worse than what we’ve had.

    Take care!

    • Donna says:

      I agree that we don’t, but you don’t either. I hope you weather this next storm OK and can make it to your appointment!

      • Jeanne says:

        So far, we’re doing okay. I made it to my appointment yesterday. (Got the staples out! Yay! ) it rained all day in the valley, and seemed to have done the same here. We did get about an inch of very wet snow during the night.

        The weather dude said our area is in danger of flooding. We’ll see.

        I’m supposed to start PT tomorrow. I hope I can make it. It’s been raining most of the day.today.

      • Donna says:

        That sounds nasty. I sure hope you don’t get flooding.

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