Imagine waking up to a dark home and realising ice is covering your windows. And doors. And outdoor stairs. I’m not talking about no winter wonderland type experience. I’m talking about ugly, brown, prickly icicles dangling off your usually ice-free home. That’s exactly what happened to residents who live along Hoover Beach in Hamburg, New York, right next to Lake Erie this weekend.
While Fox News referred to this spectacle as something out of the Disney movie Frozen, I’m here to give you the damn truth. These houses look gross and, quite frankly, a little dangerous. Falling icicles can hurt you. And as the images show, they were hanging everywhere: on windows, balconies, doors, and siding. Plus, having to carve your way out of”or into”your house is scary!
A winter storm is the culprit behind this strange scene. Last week, winds reached up to 20 mph (32 km/h) on Lake Erie with gusts as high as 40 mph (64 km/h). All that wind”along with the water from waves kicking off Lake Erie and cold air”left ice covering homes some 1 to 3 feet (30-90cm) thick.
This has happened in the past. Last year, strong winds brought water from Lake Ontario onto homes in Pulaski, New York, resulting in more ice homes.
Living on the Great Lakes is an adventure in winter weather beyond ice homes. The region is known for racked up a wild state snowfall record with 53 inches (130 cm) of snow falling in just 30 hours. It turns out residents along the lakeshore not only have to worry about the piles of snow that lands on them as a result of their proximity to Lake Erie. They now have to worry about that water covering their home as ice. Upstate New York is known for its brutal winters, but these homes are some next-level shit.
And that much ice poses some risk”especially when it starts to melt.