Season: Summer
Weather: Gale force winds and thunderstorms
Day of the week: Wednesday
Date: 10th January, 2024
Most people didn't get a good sleep overnight, having had to sleep on the cold carpet covered by the thin blankets from the convenience store or with their jackets. It got quite cold overnight, prompting a few of us to huddle together for warmth, chatting and telling stories.
Early in the morning, bleary, owl eyed café staff from downstairs who were stuck in the building with us, helped us to boil water on their gas stove in order to make coffee, tea or what other hot, instant beverages we could. They also fried us some bread with eggs, bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms, trying to use what stock they had in their fridge and freezer that would otherwise go to waste.
Breakfast turned into lunch. The café staff were so busy, they hadn't had a chance to take a break, so some of our people swapped with them. That way they could take a breather and eat, and everyone would still get fed.
We all went downstairs to make our orders in small groups, using the cold water in the toilets to briefly freshen up. There was no more hot running water since the electricity had gone out.
We didn't even have to glance out the windows to know what the weather was like. We could hear the wind howling, hear the building occasionally creak and feel the building shake in the wind every now and then. It was still so dark out there, despite the sun having long risen behind the clouds.
There was a strange air pressure that made everyone feel low in mood and slightly jittery. My gut had clenched into a tight ball, expecting something ominous to happen.
It didn't. At least, not yet.
Around lunch time, there was a calm in the storm. People waited until they were sure the wind wasn't going to pick up just yet and some people rushed home. Mass messages were received on the mobile phones that hadn't run out of batteries telling us that the meteorologists were saying this was only about an hour's lull in the storm. If we couldn't get to our destinations in time, we shouldn't leave our safe places.
One of the bosses left. Less than half the people in the building left. The rest of us lived too far away. We crowded together on the lower floors to keep each other company in the rooms that had the most natural light.
Soon enough, the wind picked back up and hail the size of golf balls pelted the windows, making all of us exclaim in surprise. There were flying tree branches, umbrellas and other debris being blown along the street. I even saw a car being pushed out of its parking place on the street. The gutters looked like rushing rapids and the drains whirlpooled with the sense of devastation.
It was petty scary.
And then a flying tree branch smashed into one of the windows upstairs, piecing through a window. Thankfully the glass mostly held, and the tree branch remained stuck there. When we went upstairs to check, there was little damage to anything else.
There was glass on the carpet, the blinds were ruined and that window would need to be replaced.
It was evening by the time the winds died down and it was declared safe for us to go home. There being no public transport, some of us would remain homeless for yet another night. Everyone was organised into carpool groups so that everyone could go home. The bosses would inform us via email when we could return to work.
Llewyn drove me home in his car along with three others.
It was a relief to get home to my apartment and discover that there was still electricity. I had a hot shower, did some chores and fell asleep wrapped up in a fluffy blanket watching television after warming up a frozen meal for dinner.