Hurricane Oklahoma - a reprise

Growing up in the semi-tropical state of Louisiana, I experienced rainfall on almost a weekly basis. My stint in Vietnam was also rainy, at least during the monsoon season. Still, I have never experienced rain such as here in central Oklahoma during a particular night in 2007.

I know Oklahoma was the hub of the “Dust Bowl” but things have changed. Edmond, the City where I live, looks like anything but a desert. I live on an acre lot on the east edge of town and I have at least fifty fully-grown trees on the lot. My backyard slants toward the house and three years ago, this became a problem.

There was a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico – Erin, I think. After blowing onshore, it tracked across central Oklahoma and prompted me to write about Hurricane Oklahoma. That night, as I remember it, was the hardest rainfall I have ever experienced, and this includes every rainstorm from subtropical Louisiana and monsoon Vietnam.

I have a covered porch and small patio outside the back door of my house. Prior owners had installed a French drain, but on the night of Hurricane Oklahoma, it proved inadequate. I stepped outside - awed by deafening thunder and dramatic lightning, and the rain falling with such force that I thought it might collapse my roof with its weight.

On the verge of collapsing, water poured from the drain on my eave. The metal fixture was unable to compete with the onslaught of water, pouring in giant bucket loads from the sky. Grabbing a broom from the kitchen, I began sweeping water toward the drain, desperately trying to prevent the back porch from becoming a wading pool. Thirty minutes passed before the storm subsided. Wearily, I withdrew to the house, quickly finding solace in my comfortable bed. The solace disappeared quickly the next morning.

Marilyn is an early riser, much more so than I. When I awoke, she said, “Be careful. The living room is flooded.”

Rain had returned during the night, apparently harder than the one I had tried to staunch. Two inches of rainwater covered our sunken living room and filled our vents. A friendly sun shone outside but the harm was already done.

We quickly called a company to assist us with the water damage and three men with shop vacuums quickly arrived. After vacuuming the water, they applied coats of antibacterial and antifungal spray onto the floor and into the vents, and then installed about a dozen fans that proceeded to blow for a week or so.

The area was named a national disaster area and FEMA ultimately helped pay for the damage. Having lived in Oklahoma for almost forty years, I am still not used to the crazy weather we have here. I lived in Louisiana and spent time in Vietnam, but I doubt I’ll ever see a rain such as the one that occurred in 2007 – one that I still affectionately call Hurricane Oklahoma.

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