We Survived Hurricane Irene in Virginia

After finally getting our power back on yesterday afternoon, I reflected on what had just transpired the last 72 hours. Man, I really miss my air conditioning and cable TV! In all seriousness, having survived another hurricane in the Tidewater area of Virginia, it makes me really appreciate our family and helps me realize what's most important in my life.

Hurricane Irene hit our neighborhood pretty hard all day Saturday and into the night. We were very lucky in our neighborhood of Gatling Pointe, located in Smithfield, VA. Yes, we had one large oak tree come down and alot of limbs, but our home was intact and we experienced no flooding (we are 20' above sea level here in Isle of Wight County). Others were not so fortunate.



Here's the picture of the western sky from the Gatling Pointe Yacht Club Friday night- the calm before the storm

We watched the storm surge hit our neighborhood Yacht Club on Saturday afternoon, and we survived the high tide at 8:30 pm, missing only a few dozen boards on the pier (we've lost the pier twice in past hurricanes). Many of us participated in a "Irene Prevention Party" from our yacht club covered porch to watch the full force of nature in the early stages of the surge. As the water came over the dock Satuday night, waves splashing high over the top, we prayed that we wouldn't have to watch it float down the river Sunday morning.



Here'a a short compilation of video that I shot Saturday afternoon from the Gatling Pointe Yacht Club. the view is looking eastward across the James River frrom our covered porch. My two kids in college kept texting for updates expressing their concern. Sunday, we awoke to a beautiful breezy morning, and my 15 year old helped me begin with the day long clean up (actually several days of cleanup)...feeling lucky and realizing that it could have been worse.



Late Sunday, we all took a break from the cleanup to survey the minimum damage to our marina and pier, and enjoy the beautiful "day after".