Mt. Nusatsum

Mt. Nusatsum

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

The New Normal



When you look at geological time and ponder how things are formed in our landscapes, you usually conclude it happened a long time ago and took a long time to happen.  Perhaps though a lot of things while they happened over a long time span, when the actual event took place they were relatively sudden events to cause the changes.  I think that's what happened in a small way with the Bella Coola Valley flood.  Years from now people will look back and wonder why that road is the way it is or why some farmer has a nice field while the neighbors isn't so good.  Bella Coola will become relativey normal soon enough, but it will be a slightly new normal.  Not everything will get rebuilt and not everything will get rebuilt the way we are used to.  I guess that is how the way things have to go.

River levels peaked again last night around 11 PM depending on your location.  It has been dropping steadily all day, but naturally is still very high.  It's a nice feeling to see it drop, but also depressing to see the true extent of the damage - places you were hoping the road was still there because you couldn't see it, are now showing that there really isn't a road there anymore. I picked up a box of tools from a neighbor whose basement flooded and brought it home tonight, hosed all the silt off, dried them and took steel wool to get rust off and then oiled them all.  Had to do something to help someone.  Grizzly
 
Runway 05/23 Bella Coola Airport today

3 comments:

  1. Grizzly, that's totally cool of you. You're the kind of neighbor I hope to have if I ever get my own place. Best of luck to you all in the valley.

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  2. I follow your blog every day, and have never been to Bella Coola. I've been planning to go this coming weekend, but obviously my plans have changed!. Anyways, sorry to see all the damage, and I hope you and everyone else there make it o.k.!

    Kevin (Calgary)

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