Half my roof is in the garden
Posted by: Aiken Drum on 08 January 2005
What a night!
We were hit by the 90mph winds and heavy rain last night and we were woken up by a horrendous banging, sliding and crahing noise, which seemed to be coming from above.
This was compounded by a power cut, and as we stumbled around the bungalow looking for matches or a torch that worked, there were three more enormous rackets from the roof.
When power was restored, I thought about going outside, but the weather was too bad, and by this time we had sort of worked out that a couple of roof tiles had come adrift (although we were hoping that what we had heard was flying branches hitting the roof). On the basis that more could come down, and discretion being the better part of valour, I thought it best to stay inside rather than risk wearing a tile.
This all happened at about 4.00 this morning, and it did not get light enough outside to get out and have a look until about 8.00.
What a sight! On two sections of the ridge of the roof, some twenty odd ridge tiles had come adrift, and on their flight downward, they had crashed into the concrete roofing tiles shattering and removing big areas of tiles in three areas, and there are about a futher six areas where tiles have been shattered, but remain in place. Luckily the underlying plastic sheeting is intact so there is an element of protection, but this is of scant cheer as the weather forcast is more rain, wind and probably snow.
The scary part though is the sight of a number of the ridge tiles buried into the lawn a good 15' away from the building. Never have I been so glad that I chose not to go outside in the dark, other wise one of them could easily have been buried into me.
I have contacted a local builder who says he may be able to help me out and at least patch up the holes; the ridge tiles can wait for better weather.
Now I know that our experience is minor compared to other events in the world, but is has made the plight of those millions so much more real for both my wife and I.
The mad thing is, one of my first thoughts when the power went out, was to head for my system and switch off the mains to avoid any potential damage - this grabbed my thoughts before worrying about what was happening to the roof - but to avoid grief from the wife I hid my action under the excuse of shutting off the burglar alarm, whose ear shattering warbling was adding to the overall pandemonium.
The price you pay for a view....
Brad
I can hear music, sweet sweet music
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Deane F
Brad
Good to hear you're ok. Hope getting the insurance to pay doesn't cost any handfuls of hair.
Quite understandable to think of the system first. The house is just as important as the support for a good system and until Naim make weatherproof components we all will have to pay thousands for decent quality shelter.
Deane
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Nime
I'm very sorry to hear of your problems. I know the terror of the roar of the wind for hours on end in the pitch dark. And the banging on the roof that you daren't investigate.
You were very wise not to go outside!
We are still waiting for your weather to arrive here in Denmark. Fortunately we aren't right on the expected track this time. Though North Jutland is expecting the highest water surge ever recorded!
In the December 1999 'Storm of the Century' (38-51 m/sec) we lost a quarter of our roof and the attached workshop roof as well. The noise was terrifying and went of forever before it all finally detached and landed across the garden, just missing the car.
A telegraph pole beside the house blew down and damaged the water supply pipe that passed deep beside it. Unknown to us at the time.
Electrical power was completely off for days. Not only no heat (no circulating pump) but the locally pumped water supply was cut off for days as well.
Luckily the outside temperature was just above freezing. But it was still utter misery indoors despite the down filled winter clothing.
The poor sod behind us had his barns trashed and his attached farmhouse covered in huge zig-zag cracks. Another neighbour's double-garage steel roof travelled over 200 metres (right past our house midway) and half buried itself, rolled into a tight tube across the corrugations, in the field beyond!
The shops and supermarkets ran out of basics and were operating by candlelight. Bottled water was going out the door by the trolley-full. It should have been rationed! It took us two days to get any. Bread and milk was unobtainable for days. There were long queues at the petrol stations. No camping gas cylinders were available anywhere locally.
Vast swathes of conifer forests were snapped off half way down the tree trunks. It looked just like old pictures of WW1. It took three years for the builders to catch up on replacing all the damaged roofing.
I'm rather afraid that we can expect many more such storms in the future.
Be grateful you are safe and still weatherproof.
Best regards
Nime
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Bob McC
My commiserations. During 'la tempete' that devastated northern France at Xmas a few years ago we spent Christmas night in a cottage in brittany convinced our roof was coming off. In the local town a silly 70 year old was killed when he went up on his roof to try and fix it in 100 mph winds! You were right to stay indoors. Even the worst roof damage can be repaired. A dead owner can't!
Bob
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by David Stewart
Even in London last night the wind was howling like a banshee and the rain crashing against the windows. This kind of weather can be really scary. I'm pleased I had my 100 year old (and very dodgy!) slate roof replaced 3 years ago. Hope you get your problems sorted OK in N.Ireland
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by seagull
Yeldarb,
sorry to hear about your roof etc. at least you weren't hurt and the insurance should sort it for you.
seagull jnr is in London on a scout winter camp at the moment - I just hope that their tents are as good as he claimed they are!
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Berlin Fritz
quote:
Originally posted by David Stewart:
Even in London last night the wind was howling like a banshee and the rain crashing against the windows. This kind of weather can be really scary. I'm pleased I had my 100 year old (and very dodgy!) slate roof replaced 3 years ago. Hope you get your problems sorted OK in N.Ireland
That was the House of Commons mate: No seriously Kinty-Dine sounds very blustery to put it mildly, good luck with yer repairs, and I hope yer not banking with that Ozzy mob down the road ?
Cheers, Fritz Von Stormy Wevvah³
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by neil w
brad
you have my sympathies ,i too was woken up to a ridge tile going strait into the side of my mini cooper works convertible which is 3 weeks old ( cost £29000)
insurance says not covered ,if tile had hit next doors car im covered
now cant wait until monday to get estimate for the damage
regards neil
car has now been moved to freinds garage
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Dev B
I'm glad to hear you are OK and there were no injuries.
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by rch
Brad,
what an awful experience! Hope the damage will be repaired soon and you´ll be able to enjoy your favourite music.
Regards
Christian
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by blythe
I remember back in about 1975, severe winds in the Midlands (and presumably across the UK) and as a teenager with a paper round at the time, I recall this terrible noise though the night and then I struggled in the early hours to do my round. When I got home, by now daylight, I saw a chimney stack had collapsed and fallen onto the roof of our house - DIRECTLY over my bed!
The garage door had also blown off it's hinges and the dustbin and lid had vanished - found a couple of days later 1/2 mile away in a hedge at the bottom of the field next door....
Nature is powerful.
Computers are supposed to work on 1's and 0's - in other words "Yes" or "No" - why does mine frequently say "Maybe"?......
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Mike Hughes
Yeldarb and Neil,
We're having similar experiences here. I dared not go out until daylight but at 3:40 am I was hauling myself into the attic for the third time to see what the score was. Had a horrendous night but got off relatively lightly. I'll be talking to my insurers asap. My partner's Mum lost loads of tiles which were similarly embedded in the garden. One landed at each end of her car. Talk about a lucky escape!!!
Take care,
Mike.
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Aiken Drum
Hi Guys,
Thank you for your kind words. I managed to get hold of a local builder who spent most of the day at least making the roof weather tight. He ended up replacing about 100 roof tiles all told, but was not able to do anything about the missing ridge tiles, and will not be able to do anything until the wind abates and the rain and snow stop.
So whilst the bulk of the roof is now weather tight, the wind is making horrible moaning noises as it crosses the exposed gap at the top of the roof where the ridge tiles would nomally provide a seal.
I was lucky with my car - I found a tile in the driveway about 6" from the front bumper. Hsd I parked the car in the usual place it would now be sporting a concrete bonnet mascot.
Seagull - I hope Seagull Jr is alright.
Neil W - Sometimes you just wonder about the logic applied by some insurers. I hope the repair isn't too costly.
Mike - A horrendous night indeed. i tried to talk to my insurers, but after an hour of working thought a series of mechanical voice options to get to an engaged tone, I gave up and will try on Monday. Lets hope that it is not going to be a case of "costing handfuls of hair" as Deane put it.
Thank you all
Brad
I can hear music, sweet sweet music
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Traveling Dan
I say Yeldarb is a modern day "hi-fi hero".
I submit the following in evidence:
(1) One of his first thoughts is to protect his system, despite being woken up in the small hours with no power and a storm destroying his roof.
(2) He has the decency and courtesy, not to mention the presence of mind, to protect his wife's feelings by disguising his actions.
(3) Consider the following.
I live only a few miles away from Yeldarb. While we suffered the same winds, it seems as though my village was in a protected enclave and we escaped the worst of it. I spent a mildly inconveninet, unpleasant and cold half-hour picking up all the rubbish after our bin was blown over - but nothing to compare with his problems. All morning long we were hearing stories about how the nearest town (4 miles away) had windows blown in, chimney stacks crashing through roofs, flooding, trees blocking roads, etc., etc. Then we heard that the next village up (2-3 miles away) was badly hit and was without power since the early hours of the morning. There were also reports of snow and bad road conditions.
Now, Yeldarb and I had arranged a listening session at my place for the afternoon. When I logged on around 2.10pm and saw his post, I naturally assumed that he would not be able to make it. Anyway, I phoned to make sure that everything was alright and to see if there was anything I could do. It never crossed my mind that he would battle his way through just to hear my system, play some music and have a good chat.
Talk about being wrong. Just as I got through and was talking to his wife, he was arriving at my door with a bag full of vinyl and CD's - and a rather nice bottle of Bushmills Malt.
Truly a hero and a gentleman!
Brad - Hope it all gets sorted out quickly and that the wind noises across your roof do not interfere too much with your listening. Thanks for a very enjoyable afternoon.
Dan
Posted on: 08 January 2005 by Lomo
By co-incidence with everything else that has occured over the last weeks, 30 years ago Darwin was blown away by a vicious cyclone which hit just before midnight on Christmas Eve.
In the local museum, in a pitchblack room one can listen to a tape recorded at the height of the storm.
The sound of a thousand banshees wailing at once has nothing on this awful screeching, as hundreds of roofs are torn off and blown throuh the air. From this I have some understanding of the events you are describing.
Glad you are all OK
Posted on: 09 January 2005 by Nime
I hope everybody survived unscathed?
4 reported dead in Denmark so far. 2 locally, when a shed roof blew off and hit them.
We watched in horror as a near neighbour's large, corrugated-steel shed roof unpeeled sheet by sheet at the height of the storm. His place is only about a hundred metres directly upwind. But fortunately the sheets all dropped flat onto the field between us.
Through binoculars I can see roof damage amongst my other neighbours. One was a brand new roof professionally fitted this year! I'm glad I put my own new roof on after the last storm!
Another neighbour's car has stopped a large tree branch because the idiot parked it right under his largest tree. (for shelter?)
We lost a floor to ceiling sheet of glass from the corner of our conservatory. Sucked out by the wind at the peak of the storm. Which produced a nasty, high-pitched scream from every gust for the next few hours.
The gate on the drive is damaged too. But it's all peanuts compared with many other's problems. The UK seems to have taken a real battering as well.
Stay safe and don't take any risks.
Nime
Posted on: 09 January 2005 by Steve Toy
I was driving over Spaghetti Junction at 3 am Saturday morning and thought the car was going to be blown off the flyover.
Regards,
Steve.
Posted on: 09 January 2005 by Bruce Woodhouse
Necessity is the mother of invention they say.
So with no power for 14hrs, our house cut off by floodwater and a large fallen tree we spent Saturday evening around a log fire, with my iPod connected to my wife's Tivoli Pal radio, and enjoyed a very relaxed evening by the light of a few candles! Battery-powered HiFi is clearly the way to go.
When the power finally flickered back on it seemed a bit of a shame.
Bruce
[This message was edited by Bruce Woodhouse on Mon 10 January 2005 at 8:02.]
Posted on: 10 January 2005 by Nime
It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good?
