THE PERFECT STORM: A Trilogy of Poems

*downtown Marshall was the French Broad

DEDICATED TO THOSE WHO HELPED AND PRAYERS FOR RECOVERY

What impressed me personally during this disaster:

1. Rain poured soggy with mudslides, rivers and mountain streams raged, taking houses, whole businesses, violent winds

2. Bent and broke trees. Buildings and homes and people disappeared, but …

3. Neighbor helped neighbor

4. Every church became a volunteer aid station and without government assistance. Churches were our distribution centers of our disaster

5. Everyone with a truck, tractor, chainsaw joined in on the rescue

6.  Hundreds of power line trucks came from 15 states and 🇨🇦 and stayed till the job was done

7. Water was shut off for 80K residents of Asheville - irresponsible city government!

8. Communications were disrupted and yet DukePower, government agencies and medical facilities told people to call or text or check portals when internet and cell were down- Duh!

9. One of the frustrations was lack of communication with friends and family and the outside world. I’m definitely switching to a satellite communication system.

10. Elon Musk donated Starlinks

11. Private helicopters flew rescue alongside chinooks to those trapped in the mountains

12. Helicopters geo-marked Buzzards for ground searchers

13. The total disaster area includrd a 100 mile radius.

14. More trees fell on roads and houses than any other disaster on record.

    1. Swift water rescue volunteer teams patrolled raging rivers until run off by FEMA

15. FEMA is a four letter word.

16.  It will take years to rebuild.

God be with us🙏🏻

THE MIRACLE OF THE CLEARING

Hurricane

Eye of the storm . . . . . Winds and torrential rain

Lights out . . . . . Communications nil

A million trees down in a . . . . . . 300 mile wide swath, 600 miles in length

In Western North Carolina

The evil Eye centered over Asheville

Isolated.

Darkness

Silence

Disaster.

What Luck!

But of all the luck

A gigantic oak . . . . . . Oh my, a huge one!!!!

Falls across our tiny 11 family cul-de-sac road

Totally blocking the entrance

No way to get in or out

Let’s get that tree removed

Says everyone . . . . but the unfortunate homeowner

“No don’t touch my tree” the homeowner says

Not by the hair of my skinny chin chin.

So we’re stuck

Cut off from in or out

Can’t get food or gas!

Or medical supplies for the special needs child

And the sick and elderly!

So after three miserable stuck days

A Stranger arrived out of nowhere

And proceeded

            To cut and claw-removed the giant tree trunk

                          From blocking our road

And without so much as disturbing

        The part of the tree on the dude’s house

Saint Stranger outta nowhere

A stern determined fella

Without hesitation

Went to right to work chainsawing

…..and clearing

Despite the owner’s vehement

                Hysterical self-serving protestation

Quick as a flash

Fella removed the tree

In fifteen minutes

Our road was cleared

         All debris nicely removed

Applause 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Then bowing on his trusty tractor steed

            To the cheering clapping neighbors

He put a finger to his nose

And as quick as he had arrived

He and his trusty tractor vanished down the road

Sorta Saint Nick style.

What a wonderful gesture from the stranger

What a neighborly deed!

It’s what neighbors do indeed in America . . . .

                                       Especially in the South🇺🇸

The owner still miffed

What a selfish . . . . foolish . . . . narcissistic fool!

He should be ashamed of himself.

Cleared! Ever bit of it magically vanished. Cleared.

Allowing access to supplies and medical needs

What a bold gracious stranger deed

To free people in need

A true American Hero

Thank you, Sir🇺🇸

A Narrative Poem brought to you by the Man on the Mountain, Roman Wolfe

HAIN’T NOBODY’S HERE!

Hain’t nobody here’s left

To weather the storm

No power, no water

Trees everwhere

They’s left fer parts unknown

Skidoodled.

These here mountains

Hain’t seen such devastation

Nor destruction

Hurricanes

Are for Seasiders

Not hearty mountaineers

Hurricane winds

Torrential rains/30 foot flooding

Rivers Raging out of banks

Trees on roads and houses - millions

One thousand mudslides, some two miles long in the mountains

Homes, businesses destroyed, wiped away

Families homeless

No power. No water. No communications for weeks

It was/is unexpected/awful

Worse storm disaster in this great country!

Us lucky

Neighbor helping neighbor

The wife and I

Decided to stay

Prepared for such doings

From yesterdays

Pray fer the lost souls🙏🏻

tom tenbrunsel

Poet Laureate of the Perfect Storm

Author’s Note: There are some questions that come to mind:

There’s always one fool in the storm. Be kind to him.

Where did the high pressure front to the west come from that guided the Storm due north? Unusual for the path of a Hurricane.

Was there a nuclear spill on the Nolichucky at Erwin?

Spruce Pine is the largest source of lithium, etc. in the world. Who would like to own it?

What effect will the new 100 year flood zone have on homes being rebuilt?

Is a mudslide worse than an avalanche?

Western North Carolina is the land of a thousand rivers. They were washed clean of natural fauna. Can that be replaced? Is the mud toxic?

How long does it take to replace millions of mature trees?

Add your question in the COMMENTS down below.

*This Trilogy is dedicated to coach Craig who lost 11 members of his family in a giant mudslide, including his parents. God bless you Craig🙏