The Oppenheimer Report 12/30/13

Ho Freakin’ Ho in Toronto! For the residents of Toronto (and all the retailers who relied so heavily on last minute Christmas shoppers to bump up their bottom line) this was not a particularly merry Christmas, as a crippling ice storm devastated the GTA and left hundreds of thousands without power or heat for almost a week (longer in some cases). In fact, Hydro crews are still working on restoring power for some and it will be a long time until all the debris from fallen trees, destroyed property, and power lines is cleaned up. In the true spirit of the season, people came together from all over the country to help Toronto recover from what may go down as the worst ice storm in the city’s history. I begin this report on Christmas day and very sober Mayor Rob Ford is giving a press conference on our continuous news channel. There’s nothing like a natural disaster to erase past transgressions. Just as Hurricane Sandy gave Obama a bump in the polls at a crucial point in his re-election campaign, (even if he is a Muslim terrorist without a birth certificate) this ice storm may be Ford’s much-needed crap deflector. Then again, some residents, and even his deputy mayor Norm Kelly, are saying he should have declared the city a disaster area, which he did not. That decision will be debated ad nauseam in the months to come, but get real people, this was a huge storm.

Of course there are the fundamental concerns about providing food, water and shelter to the most needy, and there were emergency warming centers set up throughout the city where beleaguered residents could go to avoid the bitter cold. While this storm was nowhere near as devastating as the recent typhoon in the Philippines, or the earthquake in Japan, or the many other bigger natural disaster stories around the globe, it is a major weather event for Canada, and the coincidence of  arctic cold made this storm all the more dangerous. Roads and highways were like skating rinks, and thick layers of ice covered just about everything, impeding all rescue attempts and slowing down response times for fire trucks and ambulances. As well, many stubborn residents, including Shauna’s mom, refused to leave their homes for the crowded warming centers, and when the mercury dipped, some were living in subzero temperatures for days. There are reasons why they say households should have a disaster plan, but it is usually after a disaster strikes that people actually start to form one. Flashlights, batteries, radios, non-perishable goods, a manual can opener, a camp stove … these are the things everyone realizes they need, after the fact.

 Because so many were without heat or light for days, and when people became desperate to stay warm, they sometimes did imprudent things. In the GTA alone there were over one hundred reported incidences of carbon monoxide poisoning, and two people actually died of CO poisoning. People trying to stay warm fired up their outdoor gas grills in their homes, or set up unventilated generators in their garages. This problem was compounded by the fact that very few of the affected residents were capable of listening to the news to heed the omnipresent warnings about this. Not a bad idea to have a few battery powered CO detectors in the house to warn of impending CO danger. Shauna’s mom, who was without power for six days, did have one, but it was a plug-in and did not work when the power went out. Thanks to a good Samaritan (and boyfriend of one of our caregivers), who lent her a generator, we were able to get her furnace working for her, but the generator had to be placed in the attached garage, and we were concerned that CO fumes might leak into the house. Finally, one of her guardian angels went to Crappy Tire and bought her a battery-powered CO detector. We are soooo grateful to all the people who stepped up to keep her safe in our absence. The good Samaritan boyfriend not only provided the life-saving generator, but he also assisted Hydro crews on her street by cutting up some of the fallen limbs impeding restoration of electrical service. What a hero. As Blanche Dubois said, “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.” Shauna and I struggled to provide the Taylors with loyal caregivers, but that effort has paid off in spades. The multi-talented boyfriend was an unexpected godsend.  

That storm was devastating to the flora and many of Toronto’s beautiful old trees will disappear or be truncated as a result of this storm. Layers of ice covered old growth trees and eventually they could not withstand the weight and came down, on buildings, cars, and on power lines. This happened in Buffalo years ago, and the scars are still apparent throughout the city. New growth trees, planted after a plague of Dutch Elm Disease had literally denuded Buffalo of many of her beautiful trees, were just beginning to mature when the ice storm necessitated radical pruning. The trees that did survive now look like bushes with thick trunks. I suspect Torontonians will be hearing  the buzz of chainsaws for quite some time, and predictions are that this cleanup will take 4-6 weeks. Hydro crews from across Canada have been flown in to assist in the monumental job of restoring power, and hats off to all the volunteers and workers who gave up their holiday to provide their much needed assistance to the beleaguered city.

Once the electrical mess is cleaned up, and the trees are cleared, and damaged cars are repaired, and all the spoiled food is thrown out, and the water damage from burst water pipes is cleaned up, and the roofs are repaired, and on and on, the residents of Toronto can celebrate Christmas. What a kick in the butt for retailers!  

Happy New Year to my loyal readers, I'll toast all of you on First Night with a Shirley Temple ( in a dirty glass)

 

Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2013 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED