Full Flood Bound Film available on YouTube

8 years ago the small town of Pittsfield was struck hard by the remnants of Hurricane Irene.  In a town of fewer than 500 people more than 10 homes were completely destroyed. The town, with little official infrastructure, was completely cut off from the outside world.  Pittsfield did not have it's own police force, ambulance, hospital or school. What it had was strong resilient community.

Our house was among those hit hard, but still in many ways it was a glorious time.  Days filled with sunshine and community. The roads were closed so everyone walked, the pace slowed down and everyone was looking for ways to help their neighbors.

That first Sunday when the storm hit was frightening, we saw the river rise higher than we'd ever seen it rise.  Friends had to be rescued by volunteer fire fighters and neighbors just minutes before their house collapsed, my husband was stuck for the night in the car in the driveway.  Unable to get back to our house as it was slammed by 8 feet of raging water, and unable to cross the bridge from our road into town.  Meanwhile I had taken our two young kids and my mother to the Swiss Farm Inn for refuge. 

By 7am the first morning the town gathered at the town hall to start coming up with a plan.  Already neighbors were feeding each other, taking each other in, and sorting through debris for prized possessions. Soon after families with heavy machinery started building roads, the two general stores in town set up a massive BBQ on the town green with the food from their quickly thawing freezers, medical facilities were set up in the library, and an outdoor school was set up on the green.

I did what I knew how to do.  I started to capture the story.  It was awkward at first.  I wanted to be part of the story, part of the effort to rebuild, but eventually I realized this was my best way to contribute.

The film aired on PBS 4 or 5 times, now I'd like to get the word out - community resilience comes from strong community bonds. Here is the complete documentary.