Scholastic News Kids Press Corps Blog: Nature's Halloween trick: Snow!

Nature's Halloween trick: Snow!

"Look outside!" my cousin shouted from the window in an astonished tone. It was around 5 p.m. on October 29, and I was spending the weekend with my cousins. I automatically began thinking of possible issues, but never would I have guessed the true commotion. I made my way to the window, ready to see something useless, when I saw what he was looking at — SNOW! I had heard here and there that there would be early snow, but when is there ever snow in October?! The reality of this abrupt change of weather hit me hard. Not even 24 hours ago, the birds were chirping in the sunlight filled sky! I had never seen snow fall before Halloween!

Soon after the snow discovery, we lost power. Sitting inside, you could hear the crackling sound of falling trees. After about two hours, I ventured outside to see how bad it really was. I was surprised. There was so much snow and damage! The snow was halfway between my knee and my ankles — a lot considering it had only been snowing for a short period of time. Since we were in an area with a lot of trees, naturally many would fall down. Because most of the leaves haven't fallen, let alone changed color, the extra weight of the snow caused the trees to fall. It was quite scary seeing so many trees all over the place. I was tempted to build a snowman, with the snow the perfect blend of crunch and iciness, but quickly brushed that thought away after learning that there were many electricity polls had fallen and could cause electric shock. I then went inside, and fell asleep longing for a sip of hot cocoa.

Immediately after waking up I rushed to the window. It was still snowing! I reached for the light switch to find the power was still out. With the morning light, I could see that the snow had risen higher. It was a few inches higher that it was when I went to sleep. My aunt informed me that the storm had already claimed 25 lives. I was astonished, and decided to stay inside for safety. I also learned that Worcester, Massachusetts, where we were, was the hardest hit city and that more than 800,000 homes were without power. According to the weatherman, this was the worst snowstorm to ever hit Worcester!

Today, almost a week later, thousands of houses are still without power. Schools have been closed and some might not to open until next week. As for Halloween, it has been rescheduled in Worcester and many other badly hit cities for Thursday, November 3.