Four inches of snow is virtually unheard of in Buffalo, but that was exactly what happened earlier this month when vague forecasts of a winter mix turned into a Sunday of hours of steady, fluffy white flakes that covered the county. On top of the weekend full of snowy fun, students and teachers got Monday off and a late start on Tuesday, with snow still lingering in shady spots even Wednesday evening.
“We went over to my grandma’s house as a family to enjoy the snow,” sophomore Wendy Espinosa said. “We tried building a snow ball but it didn’t work and we all ended up fighting each other and playing with the snow.”
While the snow was fun to play in, when many homes lost power on Sunday afternoon, warming up became a problem. Some residents were without power for several days, and Buffalo residents filled the local Hampton Inn. Others had to get creative.
“I only lost electricity for a day and a half but it was going on and off,” senior Betsy Martinez said. “But we still stayed at home, we just slept in our trucks.”
Those lucky enough to snag a hotel room were thankful for a chance to have plenty of heat. For houses that have electric hot water heaters that were now not working, the hot water was welcome as well.
“My family had to stay in the hotel because there’s seven of us in the house, so there was no way we could stay at home with no electricity or water,” junior Avery Hardin said. “We really enjoyed the stay at the hotel but like we wanted to be home.”
To get to hotel rooms or anywhere else, some folks had to dig their way out.
“Our driveway was packed,” freshman Maddox Hardin said. “We had to miss practice because there was no way we could get out of our driveway because of the way our driveway is shaped.”
In a month full of mounting COVID cases and political strife, the days of social media packed with snow pictures and families having fun was a welcome change.
“This snow took our minds off of COVID and it felt so good to be happy again. It’s been kind of hard to enjoy anything because we always have to wear masks,” sophomore Evana Lane said. “But I am so glad we got this snow, and I hope it comes more often.”
