Londonderry News

The Prelude to the Ice Storm of 2008

One year ago today, on December 11, 2008, the National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning. “Expect 1 to 3 inches of snow and sleet followed by between a half and one inch of freezing rain.” is what they said. It was also predicted that the roads would be icy and travel, dangerous. “Only travel in an emergency.”

What we got, was a lot worse. While we were nestled in our beds that night, the trees would come crashing down. The snapping of the limbs would sound like an Army of relentless Soldiers had advanced on our community and opened fire without warning. The “gunshots” would go on, awakening men, women, and children alike, and making us worry if our house would be the next target for Mother Nature to drop a tree on.

For days, residents in Londonderry, and state-wide, were without power. Shelters were provided for those who decided not to wait it out in their homes. Companies provided food and provisions to the shelters. A battle for generators began between those who were brave enough to stay in their homes. Home improvement stores sold out several times over.

Nelson Road in Londonderry, NH near Central Station. Notice car trapped between trees. This was the morning after, "Day 1"

Each day at 10am, from the one year anniversary of the beginning of the storm, to the anniversary of when Londonderry finally weathered through the storm, Londonderry Hometown Online News will give you a reminder of what life was like. Check back daily for pictures and excerpts from the articles one year ago.

Follow the link if you’d like to read the full article from one year ago about the Winter Storm Warning.

Feel free to leave comments. The event brought the most valuable information about the situation from you the readers and your comments.

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This entry was written by Jacklynn Weeks, posted on December 11, 2009 at 10:00 am, filed under Around Town, History and tagged 2008 Ice Storm, 2008 NH Ice Storm, Ice Storm, Londonderry Ice Storm, Remembering the Ice Storm. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Post a comment or leave a trackback.

7 Responses

1. Jim Loiselle

   December 11, 2009 at 12:22 pm | Reply

   I remember the day perfectly. I was flying home from Baltimore on USAIR from work the next AM. The plain took the route that goes up the Hudson and hangs a right at Albany. As the plane made it long left hand turn once hitting the Merrimack River and descended – one could see out the windows to the right just “wet” to the south in MA – then as the plane made the turn in the AM sun the glitter and sparkle of every single tree all a glaze in the AM sun could clearly be seen. It was soooo pretty as we came into a landing at MHT. Little did I know what was about to happen over the next 11 days.

2. Kathy Wagner

   December 11, 2009 at 1:30 pm | Reply

   Jim stole my thunder, but I want to thank all of the neighborhoods; the Cows, the Birds, the Greeks, the Chinas, the National Parks, the Nuts, the Operas, the Trees, the emotions, and other groups I missed. During this time it was fun to laugh at ourselves. Happy, I hope you are happy today.

   Take Care and Where’s Watty.

3. BobS.

   December 11, 2009 at 2:44 pm | Reply

   We should all start up our generators tonight just to rekindle the memories…on second thought maybe not!

   1. Kathy Wagner

      December 11, 2009 at 3:03 pm | Reply

      With these winds. If we lose power tonight at 10:00 pm, I’m not sticking around this time even with the generator. I’m leaving for Mexico.

4. Paul DiMarco

   December 11, 2009 at 4:32 pm | Reply

   I’ll never forget the Christmas Card I got from the Saur’s… All black, except the words “Christmas Lights, Londonderry, NH 2008″.

   I *AM* going to do a generator test this weekend.

5. Patti Anastasia

   December 11, 2009 at 6:19 pm | Reply

   Kathy and Steve, you were one of our life lines during the storm. You did an incredible job of keeping us informed and helping us keep our sense of humor. Twitter and my smart phone helped me keep my sanity. My pioneer living skills are now finely honed.

   The ice was really beautiful. But I’ll be happy if I never see such ice again.

6. Tom Batton

   December 12, 2009 at 12:02 am | Reply

   Our piece of Severance Drive has its own tap off of the high power lines that feed a large part of Londonderry and beyond. After only about 2 days the dozen-plus houses on our street got power back while our friends and family from all over and even from other towns (some without power for a week or two!) stopped by periodically (or even stayed with us!) to warm up, have a hot meal, take a hot shower… whatever. Frequently we are the last to get power back. For once we were first and able to pay back the friends we have mooched showers from in the past. The atmosphere at our house was frequently jovial and the kitchen often busy. Helped make a tough time a little easier!