On March 8th, 2017, I had a commitment to attend—a company retreat that was being held in Hamburg, New Jersey. The warnings regarding the storm were coming for days, and the weather news was clear—it was going to be a major one.
I decided to move my arrival day to the 7th instead, wanted to beat the storm and get there early, but I had a hair cut appointment on the 7th, and I didn’t want to miss it. (I wanted to look good for the event.) The hair appointment ended up getting behind schedule, and I left Massachusetts right after 1:30 PM. It wasn’t snowing yet, and I wanted to make it there before it started.
I had always heard the storm starts north and then moves south, and if NH and MA hadn’t gotten it yet, I was going to be fine. What I didn’t know was that this time it was coming from the south going north, and once I crossed into Connecticut, it was obvious that the snow was coming quite fast and strong. But I kept on going. I was going to make it! My colleagues at the retreat were calling me to abort the trip, but I insisted I was going to be okay. “Living in New England, I’m used to driving in snow,” I thought.
Right after the call, the snow started coming down like I haven’t ever seen before. The winds were strong, and the windshield wiper wasn’t able to keep it clean and clear. It was wet snow, too, and it started to pile up to the sides of the windshield, but I had a commitment, and I wasn’t going to quit until I got there.
The GPS kept delaying my arrival, and I couldn’t see the road anymore. There were no lanes, and the trucks (the only ones on the road) were driving all over the roads, regardless of lane lines. Then I started to see trucks all lining up on the side of the highway, and the snow just kept on increasing. The GPS once again showed I could save more than one hour by using an alternative route, so I did. I just wanted to get off of the highway and out of the nightmare that was developing right in front of my eyes.
That was when I made the biggest mistake of my life, I was re-routed to country roads that lead to a state park. There were only trees with branches so heavy with snow that they were hanging down on the road. The lake was dark and scary, and I was going up hills and down very steep descents. I was sliding everywhere, and I was all alone—no one, no houses, no cars, but me lost in a state park in the middle of a powerful nor’easter. I didn’t cry or panic, but I prayed with all the faith that I had, and I was determined to find my way out of there.
Out of nowhere, I saw a small truck that was stuck in the snow. When I reached it, there was a man inside who looked at me like I was crazy but pointed me into the right direction. He told me that the highway was closed, but if I turned right, I was going to see a bridge. After the bridge was an exit I could take. After crossing the bridge, a police officer was waving at me to take the exit, and so I did. I was in search of a hotel room to spend the night, but I wasn’t sure of what I was going to find. After trying three hotels and no availability, I couldn’t venture outside and drive anymore. That was it, the storm was at full power, and I couldn’t see anything in front of me. I told the lady at the front desk, I was going to stay in the lobby and just rest on the couch until morning.
That’s when two guys approached me and asked if I wanted to take one of their rooms. I was grateful for them, thankful that I was safe and happy to have a bed to sleep on for the night. The next day was a gorgeous morning and the roads were clear by the time I left the hotel. I was just one hour away from my final destination.
I was happy that the road was closed. Otherwise, I would have continued with the last hour of my drive on a winding and mountainous road. I know I would have never survived if I hadn’t stopped for the night. On March 7, the powerful nor’easter brought up to 36 inches of heavy snow, whiteout conditions, and even coastal flooding. The storm caused up to 1 million people to lose power, and at least two people were confirmed dead due to the storm. Hundreds of flights were canceled across the region.