An overheard conversation in Cordova: An old woman steps to the side of the trail for a faster, younger woman to pass. Neither know each until now.
Old Woman: Can you get by?
Young woman: Sure honey. You gonna be all right?
Old Woman: (with gusto) OH YEAH!
Young Woman: (with gusto) You got it all day long! Right?
Fences literally came down and neighbors crossed property lines to help one another during Cordova's big snow earlier this month. Everyone could empathize with everyone else's dilemma whether it be clearing snow or getting to the store. All kinds of stories are being heard about the hundreds of hours spent lightening roof loads, preventing collapse. People contributed to the emergency effort in so many ways; from babysitting to feeding others.
At least in recent times, a snow emergency was a new experience for Cordovans as folks began to dig themselves out in each neighborhood. And from there the process worked like exponential fractals, circling outward toward the next neighbor, the next need, and the next.
"One person helps another-- you call someone and then they call some one else, or several people," said State Trooper and Fire Chief Mike Hicks" That's how it works. That's how a community takes care of itself. If it's safe, you stop to help someone shovel out and that goodwill grows as it's passed along."
Eccles Creek has long been a community that sticks together. "We've got a great neighborhood." said Anita Smyke. "After we dug ourselves and each other out we moved on to Pat Kearney's Hanger at city field and we've been digging it out for the last four days afraid the roof was going to collapse."
The Smykes and others were able to save the historical Mudhole Smith Cordova Air hanger and the airplanes inside. Anita said despite the storm difficulties she was experiencing happiness at having her family safe at home the extra time. "The kids are fine and taking advantage of the snow-in to spend time with their friends. On Monday, when Jesse walked into her college geography class in Durango, the topics were the Cordova snow storm and Nome fuel shortage."
Shoveling the old railroad house on Chase Avenue and belonging to Tom Bond wintering in Arizona, changed hands three times as Dave Branshaw had been passed the job and turned it over to his assistant Cory. Dave needed go so that Ski Hill could be saved. Branshaw is the Ski Hill manager with ceaseless energy and used to working with snow crews. He was determined to get the Hill up and running even though the chairs and cables were buried up at Top Station. Everyday he reported by email to the community on the status of Cordova's favorite playground.
"We shoveled our boots off everyday," said a woman in the high school area who declined to be identified because of modesty. "Our neighbors came together. A lot of people were gone. After we caught up with our stuff we moved on to next door. Mike Mahoney was shoveling off the school. The high school music room is still un-shoveled. Robert Beedle was out here on his little tractor and plowed out Carlos' car. JR's road was just recently plowed out and that's the radio station."
Historical buildings and homes were saved by volunteers and elders were looked after. Debra Adams and Annette Janka shoveled off The Red Dragon. Traci Nuzzi and Kim Menster cleared the Rev. Belle Michelson's house while Marv and Mazie Van den Broek's log cabin was cleared by Beth Poole and her friend Jordon. "Beth was straddling the peak and shoveling to beat the band," said Kim Menster.
The Coast Guard was supposed to be deployed on Nav-Aid around Prince William Sound but instead, they shoveled the harbor finger docks, then were sent on missions to places like Whitshed Road. Old soldiers were reborn again. After he dealt with his own porch collapse. Kelly Weaverling responded to need in the Old High School neighborhood and picked up a roving team of shovelers along the way. A week later they are still working clearing the elementary gymnasium roof using handsaws and a chainsaw to cut blocks of cemented ice-snow.
"That first day of big snow, I made a trail from the door and the sides were so steep and deep I couldn't heave snow over the top to keep shoveling," said Dixie Lambert living in the Marina area. "I dug a tunnel out to the chicken house and couldn't find them. They were okay with a heated water dish and I finally got through and –no chickens, and they weren't talking to me! They had huddled up way back in there under their nest boxes. The loud "ker-plop" of snow slide had terrified them."
Lambert is the Emergency Pet Shelter director. "Nothing goes as planned but we just change it up. The pet shelter was supposed to be in the Frontier Building but the walkway over hang was loaded with huge, deadly ice and snow pack and I didn't want people going in and out of there with their pets."
On the Tuesday when the Porter House was evacuated, owners did not want to leave their cats and would have chosen to stay, endangering their own lives had the pet shelter not been switched to another warehouse location and ready to receive animals. "Yep, we've got nine cats all cozy at the shelter," said Lambert.
In Cordova winters to come, four-wheelers will likely see an even greater usage. Already purchased for their fuel savings, they became the most efficient transportation moving deftly up inclines, over ice and through streets of clumpy ice water after the rain and freeze up. A local coffee barista reported the hot cold-weather topic was snow blowers, with Honda being the model of choice, the manufacturers already sold out. The 9-horsepower was preferred in town for being the easiest to handle, but the 13-horsepower delivered the sweetest snow removal.
Prices were discussed and put to rest when one fellow piped up "Mine cost a half million dollars." That of course, was a driver from Alaska Snow Removal, (ASR), a civilian business from Anchorage that barged in a snow melting machine locally known as "the burner." Just in time the burner was put to work on 12-hour shifts with six drivers and a crew of 18. "That's kind of the hope -- to get you guys some space," said Owen Bauer from Anchorage.
Owen's parents met and married in Cordova nearly 30 years ago and he was hoping the weather would shift so that he might recognize some of the sights he remembered as a boy. At shift end the ASR crew joined the National Guard for meals of local food cooked by Sandy Ponte. The fifth day into the storm other cooks had joined Sandy and she was going home early after only 12 hours, instead of 15.
There were 501 volunteers who actually signed up with the city to be directed by Incident command and Emergency Management. "Without the volunteers, we would have had a lot more injury and loss," said City Emergency Management Public Information Officer Allen Marquette.
One of those volunteers was Sue Farzan. Since 1984 she's gained a thorough understanding of Incident Command and has a long history of forestry wild lands firefighting in the Pacific Northwest. She's been an asset to Cordova emergency response since she moved here about 10 years ago and slipped right into the job of utility person doing all sorts of tasks. Sent into the neighborhoods she made assessments and welfare checks. "Between us, radios to talk to each other were invaluable but people at home really need to hear from someone during an emergency," said Farzan.
Now that there is general relief from immediate danger, people are getting back to good health habits of eating and sleeping and anticipating the up-coming Ice Worm Festival. "Maybe there should be snow shoveling contests," suggested Molly Mulvaney. And there may be a new theme and perhaps a new dance, with Darrel Olsen's idea of 'Snow-Apoc-Calypso.'"
This story first appeared in The Cordova Times. Contact the newspaper at cdvtimes@thecordovatimes.com