snowed in

[mrdutton]

One winter in Newport Rhode Island it got so cold that the supply hose bringing potable water to our ship froze solid.

We had three lengths of inch & one-half fire hose run out to carry the water onboard. Each hose was 50 feet long if I remember correctly.

What a nightmare it was trying to get that hose inside the ship so we could thaw it out. Thank goodness the ship's tanks were topped off so we could use them and the ship's water pump to supply water.

Back in those days you could, if you were brave enough, walk across Naragansett Bay (at least until the icebreakers came into the bay to bust a path to Providence Plantation.

[Did you know that Rhode Island is not a state? Like Virginia it is a Commonwealth. The correct and full name of the place is The Commonwealth of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation.]

I had a friend in New London, Connecticut who could remember taking the front tires off of the tin lizzy and putting on ski-like devices. The vehicle would then be used to drive over to Long Island from New London via the short route - over the the ice on the sound.

[This message has been edited by mrdutton (edited 02-17-2003).]