The rain and storms have been relentless this summer in North Carolina. Our neighboring town received 12 inches of rain in six hours today. Roads and bridges were washed out and homes flooded. Thankfully there have not been too many severe wind events, but a friend of ours and a few of his neighbors experienced a microburst which fell six trees in their yard. My fiancée and I were in a microburst on a summer day in 1981 while making applebutter in a 30 gallon copper kettle over a fire. It mowed 18″ yellow poplar trunks off half way up that stood in the next door neighbor’s yard. This present event, however, worked with the additional help of month-long saturating rains so that every tree uprooted. Two were healthy two foot diameter red oaks without the typical rotten tap root and hollow trunk. I went to help and give additional training to my sons in chainsaw use. They are conscientious but a father wants to protect his investments. Few chores work you quite so hard or give quite so much satisfaction of accomplishment as cutting and clearing trees. There were as many as four chainsaws going at once, which is a concern, but everyone acted with more than adequate caution both sawing and hauling. It is good to work in tandem with friends and fellow believers to help someone. I know where two truck loads of firewood went but there were probably 8+ to be had. The hydraulic splitter was due to come later in the week and finish the job.
Tree Down!
My 19 year-old son delimbing
My 17 year-old son clearing brush
My son and I coming and going
No one exempt
The Pastor, an Elder, and two youth cuttin’ up
Balancing wood and saw
Much brush to be cleared
Earplugs and eye protection-check. Solid stance and close attention-check. Avoiding pinched chain and kickback-check
Cellulose confetti
A friend cuts to firewood length
CreatorWorship 