This was the first major storm that we had prepared for since becoming chicken keepers. Suddenly, we had a whole new list of items to add to our ever-burgeoning emergency supplies. During the days leading up to Irene’s arrival, we were forced to drive to several local feed stores to stock up on feed for our chickens, goats and rabbit. Apparently we were not the only farmers attempting to do so before the storm arrived.


I wasn’t at all worried about Tassie suffering from the stress of the situation. She never does. She has company in that club at our farm with our French Angora rabbit Herbert Menninger. Neither of them were the least bit curious about all of our storm preparations. In sharp contrast, Violet and the chickens seemed to be watching our every move and questioning why we were making them.
With the preparations made, all we could do was wait for the storm to arrive. Well, that and stay up until 3:00 a.m. the night before canning all of the farm produce I could in case we lost power. It seemed doubly cruel that Irene would come calling during the time of year when our daily garden harvest is measured in pounds instead of ounces. The canning pot keeps busy here during August and September, but without power, I’d be left to watch as our beloved heirloom tomatoes and fresh fruit sat on the counter and wasted away.
Invitation or not, Irene came on Sunday morning. While she didn’t drop as much rain as had been forecast, she brought with her wind gusts that knocked out the electricity, telephone and Internet access to our farm. To say that they were knocked out might be a bit of an understatement. The electrical box was completely ripped from the side of our farmhouse. The box, meter and electrical cable snapped from the pole across the street and took up residence in our front yard. It was tough to be optimistic about power being restored in a timely fashion when we had been effectively removed from the power grid. Welcome to life in the year 1840 at 1840 Farm.

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6 Comments
Glad to hear you made it through I one piece. Question: why didn’t you have any oil lamps? Yes I know they’re a fire hazard but if you’re careful they do a fine job. From what I’ve learned the bigger the wick the more light you get. So pay attention to the size of the wick before you purchase any oil lamps.
I used to live in a town of around 100 where the power would regularly go out during the summer monsoons and the winter blizzards. The rule of thumb was to have a minimum of 3 weeks supplies and you’ll be fine.
Thanks to all of you for your well wishes. We were lucky to have made it through the storm safely without any damage to our animals, barn, coop, or hoophouse.
I’m so glad your family, flock and coop endured the storm. Thanks for sharing your experience…
Glad to hear you’re all well!
I’m so glad to hear that your flock came through the storm safely and that you didn’t have any damage. Keep reading and keep sharing your chicken keeping experience with the rest of us. I enjoy reading about all of your flocks just as much as you enjoy reading about mine!
I really enjoyed reading your post and had similar concerns about my small flock (3 hens) as the storm approached…mine rode out the storm in our garage…thankfully we did not have any damage