The Denver Snow Storm

This story chronicles the storm, events, and Jane's rescue

Mon, March 17 Fri, March 21^st, 2003

The Prologue

It all started as we made plans for my husband and fellow Ambassador, Dick, to fly to San Diego, CA for his eleventh docent training class at the San Diego Maritime Museum. The classes were held on Tuesdays from 9:30 am to 12:00 noon on the orlop deck on the Star Of India, in San Diego Harbor. Dick had to fly to San Diego on Mondays to attend the Tuesday docent classes as United had cancelled their 8:00 am daily flights the first of the year. The weather reports were calling for snow Monday evening, however that wasnt unusual for that time of year and we didnt think much of it. Dick had listed for the 9:10 am flight to San Diego and everything was in order.

Dicks flight to San Diego Monday am was uneventful as no weather had moved into the area. By evening, it was a different matter, the weather reports were calling for 60 inches of snow. It appeared bleak for Denver as the snow had started to fall. Dick called me, PCS to PCS, and we discussed the weather conditions and the possibility that his return flight from San Diego to Denver Tuesday afternoon might very well be cancelled.

The Weather

Tuesday morning: Dick called again from San Diego and I told him that it had snowed all night and that they were still calling for 60 inches of snow in this storm. Dick called United Reservations in San Diego around noon and found out that the 4:50 pm flight to Denver was cancelled. He called me again and said that the Denver flight was cancelled due to weather in Denver. He talked to Ray Ashley, the director of the San Diego Maritime Museum, and received permission to sleep on the Media, the museums 1904 Steam Yacht, again until his return to Denver. Our oldest daughter, Robin, who lives on Franklin St. near DU was supposed to spend Tuesday night with me. However, she had a severe eye infection and she did not come as my immune system was compromised due to my chemotherapy.

The snow continued throughout the evening and into the night. I decided to leave the heat up in case the electricity went off which it did about 6:00 am on Wednesday. People in the condo called Xcel Energy and were told to expect power to be off for up to 48 hours. This meant that I would have no heat and that I would be unable to cook any food. Our range, oven, refrigerator and freezer along with the George Forman grill were all electric. As I was on chemotherapy for ovarian cancer, my fears were getting out of hand. Our friends, the Bests, who live in the Tamarac Square area in southeast Denver had been here on Tuesday evening and had high-centered their Ford diesel pickup out front barely getting home before the streets became impassable even though they had four wheel drive. By morning, they had chained up all four wheels, however, there was 48 inches of very wet snow on the ground covering a thick layer of water. Traffic had virtually come to a standstill on all but the main arteries.

The Rescue

I called the Bests on my cell phone Wednesday morning as the Quest phone service was knocked out and we tried to decide what I should do. The front door of the condo was snowed shut and had to be pried open, the awnings over the front steps were all down and a large tree was broken off and lie across the entryway. Our condo looks out onto Cheesman Park across the alley. It looked like a war zone with trees down everywhere and the four feet of snow cast an eerie stillness over the park. The Bests decided to call the Denver Police for help and a rescue was scheduled. A young couple in their 30s from a volunteer rescue group showed up at our condo. I had gathered all my supplies for my pic-line maintenance as my two lines had to be flushed with heparin daily, my blood pressure and pulse monitoring equipment, my digital thermometer, my medicines, my clothes and my toiletries and headed for their Jeep for the ride to my friends house. They had electricity so it was the reasonable place for me to go.

We proceeded east on 14^th Street to Colorado Boulevard and headed south to Hampden Avenue and West on Hampden to Tamarac where we turned south into the Bests neighborhood. 14^th Street wasn't too bad and Colorado Blvd. was quite good traveling as was Hampden. When we turned south onto Tamarac, things were different. We got to two blocks from the Bests on the side streets and the rescue jeep became hopelessly stuck in the deep, wet snow. The couple driving the Jeep tried to walk with me the remaining two blocks. I was very weak from my surgery and subsequent hospitalizations and was unable to make any headway through the wet snow which was up to my waist. We were carrying all my supplies in two plastic grocery bags and a small overnight bag. The man went on toward the Bests to tell them that we were stranded about a block away. Mac Best, a man who always was looking for a way to solve a problem, had gone to his neighbors and borrowed a toboggan to pull me to the house. Mac met the driver of the Jeep and they returned with the toboggan and I got on. The rescue wife carried my bags and Mac and the husband started toward the house. The ride was anything but pleasant. I kept tipping from side to side and couldnt hold on, falling off five times before arriving at the driveway. The men wanted me to lay down on the toboggan, however, the snow blew in my face and I couldnt stand it as I was cold and wet. When we finally got near the driveway, which had been shoveled clear of snow, the two men carried me to the shoveled area and I was able to walk the rest of the way to the front door. The rescue was accomplished and I thanked the couple for all that they had done for me.

The Epilogue

Dick called several times to see what was going on, DIA was closed Tuesday through Thursday and Dick tried to list on a flight to Denver when the airport opened on Friday. All the flights out of San Diego were over-booked on Friday as no one had left for Denver on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. He was told that he could catch an 11:00 am flight to Denver from John Wayne airport in Santa Anna on Friday. He rented a car on the trolley line toward our former apartment, which was near Qualcom stadium along the San Diego river As he was storing our car there and they had offered him a place to stay there, it worked out nice for him to leave early Friday am for Santa Anna. He dropped the car off at the airport and proceeded to the United gate. The flight left and arrived on time and he was back in Denver. Not knowing whether his car was drivable or still covered with four feet of snow, he headed for the employee bus and the landside parking lot. He was surprised to find all the snow melted off the car and the lot plowed into huge mounds of snow in the corners of the lot. He put his bags in the car and drove to the Bests where we were happily re-united. We drove back to our condo and have lived there part time happily ever after.

Mon, March 17 Fri, March 21st, 2003

Recognizing Symptoms

Mon, March 17 Fri, March 21^st, 2003