MOLINE, Mich. – Virtually no area of West Michigan was left untouched by powerful gusts that knocked down trees and left thousands without power just hours before Christmas day.
On the normally quiet 12th Street in Allegan County’s Moline, Danielle Dewey heard and saw her worst Christmas nightmare, as she watched a tree fall onto her power lines, knocking out the electricity of her home and the homes of many on her block.
“I heard something fall in the house,” she said. “I thought maybe the wind had blown a door open or something. Then I looked out the side window and was watching the tree moving and all of a sudden it just went over.”
The downed lines meant no heat, no water, and Christmas dinner was put at risk in a quickly warming fridge. It was a scene all too familiar to many in West Michigan, some unsure as to when it will be turned on.
“We had a lot of family plans,” said Danielle. “A lot of people were supposed to come over tomorrow…and I just don’t know what we’re going to do.”
Considering the circumstances, the neighborhoods story did have a happy ending. A passerby in a tractor helped them relocate the heavier portions of the stump, clearing the way for the lines to be freed up.
Either way, no one was letting the bad weather ruin an otherwise cheerful holiday.
“Nope,” said Danielle, “our families together and none of us were hurt.”
