I was in the "strip" of heavy ice here in Ohio a few years ago, and we had 3/4" to 1" on everything. Freezing rain fell for most of 2 days on and off... and there was about 18 straight hours of it at one point. No power for 4.5 days, no heat, water, anything... and then I managed to get a $650 generator from Granger Wholesale center on a government sponsored deal. The same generators were going for $3,000-$5,000 on the street, and the small portable units were still pulling a couple grand and couldn't even run a coffee maker! DOH!
This recent pass was 1/4" or so... and other than icy evening and morning with all school and service cancellations, it was NOTHING like the last bad one!
Ice storms really suck... but they are one of the most BEAUTIFUL and MESMERIZING events, when the crystalline chiming of the trees in constant frozen flux are alive with the musical crackling of their audible glistening... like a magical musical metamorphosis that is stuck in state between ice and water...
I recorded some video/audio while walking around in my yard that day... and the crunching beneath my feet, snapping of limbs and WHOLE TREES, and constant jingling like a million wind chimes blown by the breeze... is like no other experience I've had on this earth.
Majestic, indeed.
PS: In my estimation and past experience, UNLESS you absolutely HAVE to "mobilize your car immediately", it is BETTER to let the ice "melt" off than remove it by force. It CAN damage your paint, and even cause dings if not very careful.
-crisp
