STORM OFFERS CHANCE TO CONNECT, REFLECT

Monday's storm ripped through the region with a vengeance -- uprooting trees and shearing off roofs and poles.

In its wake, more than 44,000 area homes and businesses were without power. The clean-up may take several weeks for homeowners and city crews. For some, the power was off an agonizing 72 hours.

But the storm provided some interesting lessons for people.

Many learned their cordless phones don't work when the power is off. Others discovered what food keeps in refrigerators without electricity for a few days. Butter's OK, but toss the lunch meat.

It made people think about better preparation for the next time -- flashlights that work, batteries for radios, water and food storage not affected by power outages. The Scott County jail discovered that generators weren't powerful enough to light the office and power police radios and phone systems.

It wasn't a tornado, although some reported seeing funnel clouds. The National Weather Service said straight-line winds gusted up to 90 mph late Monday afternoon -- leaving behind considerable damage. We learned from the weather experts that even straight-line winds can have some rotation. Go figure.

Whatever the designation, the winds were fierce and the devastation was widespread. Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Chaffee, Scott City, Oran and beyond were hit by the high winds.

It was lucky no one was hurt. That's especially true at the Central High Pool, where the bubble was ripped to shreds. Just a half-hour later the pool would have been teeming with children.

Residents and businesses learned to pull together in a crisis. AmerenUE called in crews from throughout the state -- 50 construction and 18 tree trimming crews. Falling tree limbs continued new sporadic outages throughout the week.

Cape Girardeau and Jackson are calling out all available personnel to pick up downed limbs at the curb. Cape Girardeau will allow two extra bags of spoiled food at regular trash pickup.

Businesses tried to cope with power outages and then gas outages later in the week. Hotels and restaurants were particularly challenged.

Neighbors helped neighbors in cleaning up downed trees and blown roofs. Spending time outside without the power provided a chance to chat with neighbors and friends -- there was no TV program or video games waiting. Schnucks was kind enough to offer freezer space to store food until power returned. Other businesses and people responded in kind.

This storm was one of the worst to hit the region in recent years. It will take time and money to repair all the damage.

But in the midst of disaster, people found time to connect. It's funny how that happens. Most people seem at their best when times are at their worst. Perhaps the silver lining of this storm was the region's reaction.