Recently I had some time off work for surgery and recovery. I wisely used this time to compose some sort of new entry for the ol’ blog. Got some good ones too. However, Monday February Second, 2009 came along and brought with it the biggest snowfall in the UK for 20 years.
6 inches in some places.
In any case, it shut the country down for the day, so…I have abandoned my original piece entitled “Tom’s Unified Field Theory of Facebook, Twitter, and Blogging—or Social Networking Site Commonality Needed, or I will Die Trying.” Look for this later in the week.
Instead I offer to you my report of the Great London Snowfall of 2009 and why I am proud of my adopted country.
First of all, many of you may know that I am from Chicago, born and raised. So, 6 inches of snow is not a problem for Mid-westerners. (Unless it happens in September or October.) We look at it, the kids play it in, I complain about all the idiot drivers and we get on with life. However, Chicago and other similar cities in America, are equipped to handle the snow. Chicago’s snow removal budget last year was $18.5 millon (£12.8 million, 14.2 million Euros.) Here in the UK, the snow stops everything. Admittedly, this snow came at the morning Rush-Hour. Even in the states, 6 inches would cause a big problem during the commute. But our problem here was based on the lack of tooling to deal with it. But—bless their hearts, they tried. Gritters (Salt-trucks) were sent out, councils reacted slowly (as they would in the states.) The media went crazy. They even sent reporters to the Motorway overpass for the gratuitous video shot. You know the one—a reporter, bundled up in the biggest NorthFace Parka possible, fur-lined around the head (it was perhaps 30 degrees F. but no matter) standing on the bridge/overpass showing the traffic down below, one lane jammed, one lane eerily empty. The coverage begins with “As you can see I am standing on the M 25 Motorway where traffic is backed-up for over 15 miles…”
They learned this from Chicago and New York. It’s good TV, it works.
The most impressive thing to me was the overall reaction of the English People. It started with those who tired to get into work. If you left early enough, you succeeded. However, upon arrival you found that nobody else really made it. One then became stranded in London or wherever else, as it were, because one certainly wasn’t going to go back on the train or motorway--that would be madness. So instead, one begins to wander about in the snow, in the city, in the very quiet peaceful city. The buses stopped running for they found that they could not go up even the smallest of hills. The trains also stopped because—who knew that the tracks would have to be plowed? Taxi’s were also a no-go. All 5 London Airports simply shut down. This type of silent awe that swept across the country would NOT have occurred in the states. This much is certain. We could learn from this part. Of course, we don’t get “quiet” cities with our snow. We get GIGANTOR Snowplows!
As mentioned above the media was in its glory—but in a good way. Still cliché, but good. The BBC was putting people on the air to read their on-the-spot-composed poetry about the glory of snow and “snowdays”! I supposed this is understandable, because it just doesn’t happen here. At my children’s school, they had never seen a “snow day” in their entire lives. Many of the teachers could not remember having one either—even as kids themselves. SkyNews provided instructions for building a snow man! At the houses of Parliament, there was a verified snowball fight. (caught on film.) There was sledging (sledding) in Hyde Park. A few intrepid souls even took out their cross-country skis and tooled around.
All in all, the Brits handled the disastrous snowfall like they do with most other disasters: A shrug, a sigh, and they get on with it. These are the same people that, when their subway was regularly bombed in the 70’s and 80’s—they simply climbed up the stairs and walked to the next station, and then got back on.
The USA has Snow Plows. The UK is doing just fine, thank you very much.
--tomb
