Snow gone, mud returns

~ beetleypete

I often use the phrase, “Be careful what you wish for”, and with good reason. After almost a week of being inundated with heavy snow, it began to rain over the weekend. By Sunday afternoon, all the snow was gone here, and the temperature had climbed from -4 C to +5 C.

For me, that meant a very muddy dog walk, exacerbated by the melting snow that lay as water on the ground, with last month’s mud still lurking underneath. Ollie was soon filthy from the combination of brown water and gloopy mud, and I was back to trying to keep upright, as my boots disappeared into the mire. All of a sudden, the cold weather and snow was looking a lot more inviting…

On the plus side, all local roads are now open, and life in Beetley can return to normal. The shopping trip today will be routine, and the children have returned to school.

However, other parts of this country are not so lucky. I have just been watching news reports about the military being used to helicopter supplies into villages that have been cut off for at least five days. The water companies are asking people to only use water for ‘essential use’, as they are struggling to cope with burst pipes and leaks. In some areas, there is no drinking water, and people are being issued with bottled water on an emergency basis. Rural districts around the country have had no power supplies for five days, and the rail and road networks are still not functioning properly.

This is the 21st century, and Britain is the fifth largest economy in the world. Heavy snow or not, I think that the response of the authorities to this weather has been shameful.

37 thoughts on “Snow gone, mud returns”

  2. I was just seeing about our nation’s failure to restore power to Puerto Rico, months after the hurricane. Our president can’t seem to grasp that they are American citizens. Here we are heading into another snow storm, 6-12 inches predicted. Then again on Monday. Crazy weather everywhere I guess.

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          1. That looks familiar. I watched similar destruction in Oregon where houses were built on a spit because “we know how to make it work.” Here we continue to reimburse people who build too close to the ocean with disaster relief. It would be prudent to relocate people with the same funds so we wouldn’t have to reimburse them every few years.

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  3. Snow? What snow? We had the warmest February on record – 24 of the 28 days we reached the 80 degree F or higher mark! Cooler now. High in the 70s.

    😉
    Best from Florida.

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  5. Your snow is gone… and ours is back. *Sigh* We’re still waiting on our March blizzard too. It comes every year like clockwork. Apparently, it’s set for around St. Patty’s day this year! (Good thing I always drink my beer in the comfort of my own home for that! It’s not busy, and it doesn’t have to be green!) Hopefully, this will be over soon and the ground will firm up for you! Spring is on the way!! …hopefully??

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  6. Sorry to learn about those inconveniences Pete. If that happens here, flood and all that I mean, the govt. would most likely be slow in responding. Their pockets are more important than helping people.

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    1. Thanks, Arlene. Most issues here are the responsibility of Local Councils, who govern counties. Their funding has been cut by central government, and they are now having to choose where to spend the available funds.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  8. Pete, this is a universal issues – we have government agencies that we fund to be prepared for this type of thing and invariably they botch it and then talk about what they learned from their disastrous response – with all the time to plan there is no excuse not to be prepared!

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    1. Seems to be the same in all the supposedly ‘developed’ countries, John. Reaction, instead of preparation. But when large rural communities are ‘cut off’ in 2018, that’s unforgivable in my book.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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      1. Pete, we couldn’t handle a storm in one of our major cities! That said, you re right: rural communities need this help much more than urban areas, so to be flat-footed in that regard is inexcusable

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  9. The big thaw started here today, although I expect it will be a week before the snow is gone and replaced by mud, the Niva will be kept busy for another month yet I’d guess.
    I heard some news on Radio 4 and was astonished that some people were still cut off, but then also heartened by some of the selfless acts as people rally round.

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    1. People really have been helping others out, Eddy. It’s always great to see that, and to know that you can count on neighbours, and even strangers. But the villages in the north have been more or less abandoned until today, and I think that’s shocking.
      Cheers, Pete.

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      1. In the past I’m sure the farmers used to clear the roads, that was until they were told they needed public liability insurance, special training, health and safety approval…or maybe that’s a romantic view of the past?

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  10. I suppose that Britain is not used to such bad weather, Pete. We had snow in South Africa a few years ago. It started 2 days before a public holiday so a lot of people were travelling on that particular weekend, including us. It took us 14 hours to get to Durban compared to our usual 7 hours.

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    1. The south of this country doesn’t often get such severe weather, that’s true Robbie. But the North, Wales, and Scotland get this almost every year, and everyone still acts ‘surprised’. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  11. The remote areas are always hardest hit. Happens here too; power outages can last for days on our nearby islands and where trees are thick after a storm. Hopefully everyone will be back on line soon. But the mud sounds dreadful and I can’t imagine what Ollie looks like after trudging through it. Hang in there and hope for spring to appear with sunshine and drying power! 🙂

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      1. True. Every couple of years downtown Seattle practically shuts down and traffic is hopelessly snarled if snow starts falling in the middle of the day. I once spent 10 hours trying to get home on a snow day… only occasionally does the forecast line up with the event, which can help with the response. It’s much, much worse in other places though so I’m not complaining.. we have it pretty good here.

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  13. You’re not alone. Our response to those who live on the coast of Massachusetts after the terrible Nor’easter on Friday has been slow. Still no power. Looks like a war zone. And yes, be careful what you wish for; snow must be sounding pretty good right now. Best to you, Pete.

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    1. Thanks, Jennie. I really fail to understand why some of the most developed countries in the world can never cope with winter. Yet the rains run in Siberia, and the kids still go to school…
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  14. The snow has gone here too, though no mud for me to contend with as i dont have a dog to walk. There doesnt seem to be anything inplace to cope with it all, so no doubt we’ll have to go through the whole thing again next time, and nothing will have improved.

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