Death by Electricity

Last night we were hit by quite a storm. The worst I've ever experienced for as far back as I can remember. For the better half of 20 minutes, rain flew horizontally at unnatural speeds, making it impossible to see 5 feet in front of your nose. It came so fast, ten minutes earlier Shane and I had been sitting on the back patio watching the clouds move by (or "boil" as his dad would say). At first, we sat in shock, questioning whether or not we should do something. Shane arose first, anxiously insisting that we get away from the window. The rain slammed against the side of the house, creating a nerve wracking ruckus. Unsure of what to do, Shane and myself wandered the house. As the storm calmed, and viability came back, the power began to flicker, neighbors alarms were sounding and the appliances went haywire...until it went out completely. Looking outside, it was apparent that the storm had done some damage. Most trees had either lost branches, snapped or fallen completely. Debris of the wounded trees lay everywhere, and a river now ran down the trench-like swale between my row of townhomes and those across the lawn, creating a mote between us. They were fortunate enough to keep their electric, ours wouldn't return until after the sun came up this morning. My power hasn't been out in ages. Ever since we moved from Dawson Drive, we've lived in homes with underground wiring. But this storm took out almost half of Baltimore County. I liked it. I actually miss power outages. You get to sit in the dark and enjoy the simple things in life. No TV, no internet...no technology. Which is why Shane left, bored with the lack of entertainment. I, however, enjoyed my candlelit evening of solitude.

I'm worried, though, because BGE recently clear cut along Cromwell Bridge Road, an entire hill, miles long, of mature trees. Simply because of the potential threat they posed on neighboring electric wires. It's criminal and devastating. I fear they'll try to chop down all the trees along the wires near my house. As if the storm didn't destroy enough of them.

Arriving at work this morning, it was clear Towson was left unscathed. The only victims I saw were two sad birds, dead beneath an electric wire.

Here's a link to an article about the storm:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/weather/bal-storm0727,0,5209499.story