Any storm disaster stories????

[AquaScaper]

I have one so I'll start.

My power went out around 12.30pm yesterday. Apparently this affected our sump pump and when I went down into the dark bsmt at around 8.30 to check tank temps I stepped into abt 2 inches of water. Not good!:no::realmad::realmad::realmad::realmad::real mad:

Called landlord, was told that without a generator the water will just keep rising. No way of obtaining a generator at that point. Finally around 10pm the landlord showed up with one. from 8.30-10pm the water managed to rise another inch and a half or so and things were starting to float.
To make matters worse, we have 2 shop vacs which were totally useless without power so we just spent a buncha hrs wading through the pond, trying to save what we could.
10.30 the generator was starting to do it's magic outside and the water levels in our drains were dropping. Levels inside the house remained as they were and maybe even rose a bit. We were able to power one shop vac for short periods of time to try to suck up some of the water, but it really wasn't making any sort of a dent. We decided that it was time to pull the carpet. Took the 3 of us until 2.30am to get all the carpet and underlay out of the living room area. I mostly manned the shop vac. We still had carpet left in the spare room but b/c we had loaded what we could in there we left it be and concentrated on the rest of the pond throughout the bsmt. 3am we gave up and went to bed, still no power I felt much like a pilgrim blowing out the bed side candle in hopes that I wouldn't have to light it back up again when I woke.

6am rise and shine....Hubby has to go to work and I thankfully have the day off.
We have power, came back on round 4.30 the neighbor said..YAY!.

Went downstairs to check on things, the only thing missing from the new pond which developed were ducks, there was yet again more water.:eek::realmad::realmad::realmad:
The generator stopped working some time while we slept and our efforts to drain the pond earlier seem like a total waste. Hubby hooked the sump back to the regular power source. The water level outside once again dropped. Levels in the house remained constant. Out come both shop vacs. Hubby left for work at 7.30, after having made hardly a dent in the flood. I kept working, using both vacs to my advantage. I now have the water level down to somewhat of a puddle, but the forecast of impending rain is not boding well once again.

I also have another problem now, my 80gal toank is down there, I now have to drain it to remove the carpet and the now damaged stand out from underneath it. I'm beginning to feel that maybe I really don't want the hassle any more. I'll be lucky if my fish survive the below 20 temps in the tank they had over night and even luckier if they can live in a bucket for who knows how long after that. I'm not sure if I'll even be able to re-use the stand at some point, it's pretty heavy duty, but like anything made of wood and press board, it likely won't safely hold the tank any longer.

I have now ran out of usable explicitives and if I hear myself say the F-word one more time today I'm going to explode. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a way to control it at this point. I so badly just want to lock myself in my bedroom and not come out till it's all fixed. :realmad::realmad::realmad::realmad::realmad:

Well, break time is over.

:cry:

[CACAdmin]

:cry: How awful for you Aquascaper! :hugs: I just don't know what to say to make it any better. :Dunno:You must be absolutely exhausted. the only thing missing from the new pond which developed were ducks Amazingly, I think maybe it's your sense of humor that'll helping you get through it. I know it's terribly discouraging and feels at the moment like there's no end in sight. If I didn't have to head out to work, I'd offer to come by to help with the cleanup. Hang in there and let me know if there's anything I can do to help. :hugs:

[AquaScaper]

Thanks Jay :) It's the thought that counts.

My landlord finally showed up again and now we're just getting to the last of the water and then I guess I'll have to start on emptying the giant tank. Not looking forward to this b/c since I have no python or even a proper sink and tap set up down there to hook one up I get to use a bucket and haul the water outside one bucket full at a time.

Heh, maybe I can just drain it all on the floor and blame the flood ;)

MMMMMM FUN!....
NOT!:no:

[Melody]

What's in the tank Luv? Can I adopt them into a smaller tank until you get things cleaned up? Sounds like you'll need your buckets, and in a tank I can at least provide extra filtration & all that. They have to be moved anyway, they can stay here all comfy and looked after.

I didn't lose my power, my floor is dry - lean on me girl, that's what I'm here for.:hugs:

[AquaScaper]

Thanks for the offer Mel :D

I'm not sure if you'll have the tank space to accomodate any of these guys or not, if you do it might be a better idea instead of stuffing them into a rubbermaid. If anyone else could possibly foster any of these guys for a couple of weeks that would be awesome. If not of course I understand, they're not exactly easily placeable fish.
I don't have enough tanks to spread them all out without losing many other fish to their appetites lol.

Everyone in the tank has thus far been really healthy, I have never had any sicknesses or anything affect them so I am hoping they will all survive and be able to go back into their tank fairly soon.



The fish I might need placement for are:

1 Green Terror 4"
1 Jack Dempsey 4"
1 Yellow Lab 4"
1 Bala Shark 5.5"
1 Unknown Pleco 4"
1 CAE 7"+
1 CAE 5"

Actually the Bala Shark is going to be looking for a permanent new home because he's been targeted by the pleco and large CAE as an easy midnight snack and is starting to show missing scales, I've caught both at different times sucking on him like he's a giant lollipop lol. Ironically enough the cichlids leave him totally alone as if he doesn't even exist. I will post him in the classifieds section.


Flood update:

The water has now been sucked up off the floor, walls are still wet and it's already smelling musty as heck down there so my next fear is mold :(. Landlord rented an industrial blower to help dry things out but with the weather the way it has been, I'm thinking the bsmt will be in shambles for at least a couple of weeks. My biggest priority will be to dismantle the tank, remove the carpet from underneath and figure out the damage to the stand, so far I haven't seen any bubbling but the wood is definitely wet. After that's down and out of the way, the landlord will be cleaning the concrete with all kinds of chemicals and then covering it with some sort of sealant and after that I will be able to set the tank back up again so I'm thinking down time will be 2-2.5wks.
What a freakin mess. :(
I also have a 20gal down there with guppies and 2 baby CAE's in it but I think I'll just move it upstairs temporarily to keep them safe from the chemicals being used on the floor.

Hopefully Mother Nature will have pity and leave the wind at home next time she comes to visit.

[Melody]

Hmmm... where I'd put that bunch I'm not sure. Couldn't it be the Endler's or something? If I wasn't holding Blaine's fish I could do it, if somewhat cramped... ok more than somewhat. They'd fight in small tanks I assume?

Or I could take the community fish and you could try to make do with the 20G for a couple of weeks of over-filtering and extra water changes. That's the biggest tank I'd have to offer them after Blaine's fish go anyway.

[AquaScaper]

Thanks anyways Mel, I'll figure something out. Worse scenario I may try to find an lfs that could maybe hold them for me for a couple of weeks or something. That or re-home them and turn the tank into a display case for hubby's car models lol

[blainep]

I wish I could help, I've got lots of tank space available, but I'm a few hundred km's away.

Sometimes Mother Nature can spank us pretty badly.

Keep us updated.

[thegrandpoohbah]

I might be able to help. I have a Python you can borrow since I won't be doing water changes until the water clears up. Also, my 33G is currently bare-bottomed and only housing a dozen applesnails and 5 ramshorns so I may be able to house one or two of your fish. The pH is 7.8 and the water is moderately hard. The only problem is that it is unheated (currently around 70F) and would take a day or two to bring the temperature up for tropical fish. PM me if I can be of any help.

[AquaScaper]

Thank you so much for the offer Poobah, but I think it'll just be easier for me to keep them in a couple of rubbermaid tubs and hope they'll be alright for a few weeks. I'm going to start taking everything down tomorrow and will be using a regular hose to drain it as a python won't work in the bsmt with no proper sink and tap set up.

It'll all work itself out.

Thanks for the support you guys are awesome! :notworthy:

[fishenthusiast]

I am sorry to hear of your troubles. Your landlord has house insurance, he should call in a restoration company. They will cut out the wet drywall and replace it for you. If you don't mold is definately the next step. There could still be water trapped in between the drywall and the outer wall, the only way to determine that is by drilling holes in the drywall.

As for your fish, I have an empty 33G tank you could borrow until you can get your 80G up and running again. I also have a couple of empty 10's and an empty 5g but I assume those are too small for your fishies.

Let me know if you would like to use it, it is only taking up space in my living room.

[CACAdmin]

Just wondering how you're making out with the cleanup. Have been thinking about you and your hubby & all the work involved. Hope you're making steady progress and that the transistion for the fish goes smoothly.

[AquaScaper]

Thanks for the thoughts Jay :)

The floor is now dry, thankfully we had 2 shop vacs and were able to get all the water soaked up but, the walls are still damp and we now have mold growing in our closet and spare room even though we had an industrial fan blowing for 2 days along with heaters. The landlord is going to have to spray everything with something to kill the mold and it's looking like his insurance may not want to cover this mess because it could have been avoided had he had a back-up battery or other power source hooked into the sump in case of such an event as an extended power failure, he didn't have anything so the insurance company are being stinkers right now. I don't care one way or the other, he HAS to get this fixed as we cannot and will not live in mold, I have enough health problems already without adding breathing problems to the mix.

The fish are still presently in the tank, I'm waiting till the last minute to move them so they spend as little time in bins as possible, plus now with another impending storm on it's way I have been preparing as much as possible for maybe another flood so the fish will now have to wait.

If this keeps up I'll be selling the tanks and keeping plastic fish LOL

[Carlos the Aquanut]

Well, my story is much like yours. Now power till Sat night.... tank temps dropped wayyyyyyyyyyyy down... two went below 68. Finally have it back, lost a few fishes in the end and right now..trying everything I can to save the last black lace veil angel.

I am so mad at hydro I could spit. They came out the night of the storm...seven trucks and cleaned up the trees that came down over the lines...put in new poles...

I thought..yes, power will be back quickly. Nope... they left with the lines still down and never came back till Sat. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR RRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrr


and every time you call them... they say..well we cant give you a time, our crews are working as hard as they can. Ya right... do a few hours of over time and go back to your nice warm dry house while the rest of us freeze our asses off.
I am tellin you, this never happened in ONT. I lived in the north of Ont, four feet of snow..etc a nd Hydro would work untill ALL power was back before going home. It's called your job, do the bloody thing.


rant vent, rave..etc...

[CACAdmin]

it's looking like his insurance may not want to cover this mess because it could have been avoided had he had a back-up battery or other power source hooked into the sump in case of such an event as an extended power failure, he didn't have anything so the insurance company are being stinkers right now. I don't care one way or the other, he HAS to get this fixed

According to The Province, Victoria has approved compensation for individuals who experienced uninsurable losses during the storm. This could apply to your landlord or yourself. Check out the Provincial Emergency Program site: http://www.pep.bc.ca/hazard_preparedness/Flood_Information.html and click on the yellow box "Disaster Financial Assistance Info".

Well, my story is much like yours. Now power till Sat night.... tank temps dropped wayyyyyyyyyyyy down... two went below 68. Finally have it back, lost a few fishes in the end and right now..trying everything I can to save the last black lace veil angel.

I am so mad at hydro I could spit. They came out the night of the storm...seven trucks and cleaned up the trees that came down over the lines...put in new poles...

I thought..yes, power will be back quickly. Nope... they left with the lines still down and never came back till Sat. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR RRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrr


and every time you call them... they say..well we cant give you a time, our crews are working as hard as they can. Ya right... do a few hours of over time and go back to your nice warm dry house while the rest of us freeze our asses off.
I am tellin you, this never happened in ONT. I lived in the north of Ont, four feet of snow..etc a nd Hydro would work until ALL power was back before going home. It's called your job, do the bloody thing.


rant vent, rave..etc...

Sorry to hear of your troubles. It's so frustrating and hard to lose fish. :cry: Freezing your butt off isn't much fun either.

As for Hydro, I understand your anger and frustration. I'd be upset too. But, don't be too hard on the actual guys who were out there working. Not only might they not have been linemen (or whatever the term is for the guys that string the lines up) :Dunno:but they were probably didn't have a real choice in the matter. If they were capable of putting the lines back up, the reason they didn't probably all comes down to money... Hydro probably doesn't want to pay the overtime (gee it'll wreck their nice budget :err: ... that's likely more important to them than your lack of power:mad: )... and so the guys would have no choice but to head back to the yard with the truck.

It, of course, would be nice if they'd just stay & finish the job out of the goodness of their hearts, they probably don't dare for a few reasons. If they're not on the clock, they're not covered by WCB. If they have an accident on the way back to the yard, they might have to shoulder the cost/responsibility entirely and finally, Hydro might just decide to take disciplinary action.

I don't work for Hydro but when I drove for a hotel, I've worked 'off the clock' to help out guests or co-workers (to do the 'right' thing) but never more than maybe 15 minutes max and just kept my fingers crossed that nothing happened. (If it did, I knew it would be my butt that was on the line:eek: ).
Hopefully, nobody loses power today. The wind is sure blowing hard out there! Good luck to everyone!

[AquaScaper]

I wouldn't lay blame with the hydro workers either, they're just a bunch of big corporation slaves that really have no say in anything, much like the customers.
I've heard on the radio that we are supposed to be getting BChydro rebates next year, doubt it'll happen now lol.

Update on the bsmt situation is grim. My landlord has been MIA since thursday, was supposed to be here on Sat & Sun spraying and cleaning. The floor is now dry as a bone and the walls are dry to the touch but, I don't know if they're still wet inside. I'd imagine since there's nice spongy insulation in there, there is probably still a good deal of water trapped inside. We also now have Black mold growing inside our closet under the stairs and in the spare room. I am not happy. I'm giving him till Friday morning to return my calls before I start calling the rental board and health inspectors, this is crap. He keeps it up and he'll be putting us up in a hotel while he strips the bsmt and renovates it all because this mold is a real health concern and this is the bad stuff not just regular old mold. It seems to be spreading further by the day, I shudder to think what the insulation behind the walls looks like if the outer walls look as black in some spots as they do.

[CACAdmin]

Aquascaper, I don't blame you for being upset with your landlord. It's one thing not to arrive to do the work at the promised time (sometimes, there are things which prevent us from doing so), but the lack of communication is totally unacceptable. He should, at the very least, be in regular contact with you so that you know the status of things and have a realistic expectation of how and when the work will be completed.

Good luck and keep us updated.