Spring Storm

 We experienced such a mild winter here in Nebraska this year that you just knew that we would get a BIG spring storm.  We did not get hardly any snow this winter and the temperatures were above normal.  The BIG storm hit this last Saturday afternoon.  We had spent the morning at a 4-H meeting and at two soccer games.  The sky started to get really dark during the last game and the wind had really picked up toward the end.  I was glad to get home.  Then about 1:30 p.m. it started to rain and shortly after the hail started. 

 At first the hail was pea sized and then it got bigger to maybe a quarter in diameter.  The hail continued to fall and fall making the ground look like it was covered in snow, but in reality it was hail.

 The rain and hail were coming down so fast that the gutters were getting clogged by the hail and the rail was spilling over the edges.  The water was running and swirling down the street very fast.

 The kids were all in the basement because they are afraid of storms and tornadoes.  Keith and I were upstairs watching the storm when suddenly Erica started screaming and crying for help.

 The water was coming through the window in Erica's room.  The window had water gushing out of it like a waterfall.  The water was running down the wall and forming a lake in her bedroom.  I do not have photos of the water gushing because I was too busy trying to deal with the water.

 As I am using the small wet/dry vac that we have to get water off the carpet, Cara was calling one of the neighbors to see if we could borrow a larger wet/dry vac.  Jeff and Elliot came to the rescue fast.  Keith was also working next door to get water out of the neighbor's basement because they were gone for the day to a funeral.  The carpet and pad had to be completely removed from Erica's room.

 We also had to remove pad and pull back carpet in about 1/3 to 1/2 of our play area in the basement.  The concrete was wet and things had to be moved to start the drying process to prevent mold.

 On Sunday the sun came out and the wind was blowing pretty strong, so we hauled the pad and Erica's carpet outside hoping that would help it dry faster.  I joked that this is what "rednecks" do.

 Two nights last week I covered about 80 percent of my plants so that they wouldn't freeze and then on Saturday some of them just got demolished and broken by the hail and storm.  My clematis was to the top of the trellis and it is so broken.  I hope it recovers because it is beautiful when it blooms.

 My bleeding heart plants were blooming last week and this is what was left on Sunday.

 This is the north side of the house where I have hostas and bleeding hearts.  All are broken and smashed.

 We received over 4 inches of rain and hail in a short period of time.

The city of Norfolk was hit hard by the storm.  Many people had water in their basements, roofs damaged, and house siding damaged.  The streets were flooded with water and hail.  The city used snow plows to clean up the hail and unclog the streets.  People driving were stuck.  Some businesses were also extremely hit with damage, especially our hospital's emergency room.  The damage at our home compared to many was minimal.  We were just glad that we were home and that everyone was safe.  This was a storm that we won't forget for awhile.

Take care,
Michelle