One week after Hurricane Irene, we are happy to report: Nothing

Although downed trees and power outages plagued Bolton following Hurricane Irene last week, it looks like Fyfeshire Conservation Area, the ponds and the dams made it through unscathed.  When I walked around the area the morning after the storm (nothing else to do--can't shower, can't make coffee without electricity...) there were no large trees in the paths, no visible damage to the dam, and minimal flooding, although the waters were certainly more forceful than before the storm.  Just a lot of leaves and small branches strewn about.  Even the piles of brush we had dragged out to the road on community service day to haul away remained intact. 

I took a few video clips of the dam before and after the storm.

Here is a video taken on August 27, the day before the storm. Not​ice how no water is coming through the pipe or spilling over the rocks, and the brook below the dam is just a very gentle gurgle.

The morning after the storm (Monday, August 29), I took this video.  The water is much stronger and the brook downstream​, while not raging, has markedly increased in volume.

This morning, six days after the storm, the cascade of water over the sides has reduced to a flow through the pipe, and the brook below the dam is much gentler.

The stream that feeds the large pond near the entrance was also greatly reduced. Below is a clip of the stream as it flows through a culvert below the path near the entrance to the Fyfeshire Conversation Area on Wattaquadock Hill Rd., taken the morning after Hurricane Irene.  Through much higher than usual at this time, (normally a mere trickle) it did not flood the path and is hardly a raging torrent. 

Here is that same stream this morning--completely dry. 



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Update to this posting 9/13/2011:  Following the heavy rains that the remnants of Hurricane Lee brought us last week, the flow of water over the dam is the heaviest it's been all season.  The flow has lessened quite a bit since the below video was taken four days ago: