‘I don’t know about that, but we might be lucky and find a friendly face.’
Brady looked into her eyes and saw an inner strength that he was sure would see her through all of this. He sincerely hoped it would, as he was extremely fond of Jane. Of course, his wife was always in his thoughts, but Jane now played a very large part in his life.
They re-dressed and hauled the sled into the snow again. Brady set off with Jane close by on his right, so that he could keep a close watch on her – if she faltered he needed to identify the weakness quickly.
They made good time and their progress was assisted by a strong wind at their backs, which kept the severe wind chill away from Jane’s face. In little more than an hour, The Barge restaurant at Swineshead Bridge appeared out of the gloom. However, the snow had done its job, because little of the building remained in view. The single storey annexe was completely buried, but the main building still poked out of the drifting snow. The problem now would be gaining entry, because the upper windows were below the snowline. They walked towards the front and the three main chimneys. Brady had been here several times before, and the landlord was another old friend from RAF days. He had actually stayed at the pub as a houseguest and knew that there was a Velux roof light between the two main chimneys. Brady’s aim was to dig through to the window and gain access to the main house after attracting the attention of the family inside – if in fact they were still alive. He sincerely hoped so; otherwise access would be very difficult – if not impossible!
They skied to the ledge created by the bedroom window on the first floor, dumped the sled and extracted the small shovel from under the tarpaulin. Brady knew roughly where the roof light was, so he moved gingerly up the slope and using the lower chimney as shelter, began the task of digging down to the roof surface. Luckily, the snow wasn’t deep because there appeared to have been several mini avalanches over the previous few days and strangely, there was a patch of less deep snow exactly where the window should be. Within a couple of minutes the shovel clanged against glass – a direct hit! Brady waved at Jane, giving the thumbs up. He returned to the digging, and within five minutes had cleared most of the snow away from the potential entry point. He then started a regular and monotonous drumming on the glass with the wooden handle of the shovel, hoping to attract the attention of someone inside the room in which he'd stayed several times. The restaurant owner was an old, old friend!
He’d been knocking for nearly ten minutes and no one had responded. Jane cut a forlorn figure in the wind, and Brady reckoned he would have to break into the pub if nothing happened soon. Just then, a face appeared in the room below and was waving at Brady. It was a familiar face, and Brady sighed with relief.
‘What do you want? Who are you?’ shouted the man.
Brady stripped off his goggles and lifted up the front of his balaclava to show his face to the chap below – his old friend Mike Scaiffe.
‘Open the window, Mike, it's me Andy, plus a friend. Quick, it's bloody freezing out here!’
‘Dear God!’ mouthed Mike as recognition swept over his features. There was a large ladder under the window, onto which Mike leapt to release the access ladder and the window catches. The window opened outwards and upwards, leaving a gap just large enough for a person to pass through. In the meantime, Brady had hauled Jane up to the window and was now guiding her down towards the ladder, as Mike assisted from below – he'd clearly done this before. Once she was safely inside Brady attempted to get the sled through the gap – but to no avail. It was just too large – so he wedged it against the chimney and hoped that not too much snow accumulated overnight. He then turned and lowered himself down the ladder and into the loft conversion. Mike shimmied up the ladder, pulled the window closed and flipped the release catches to locked.
Both men embraced each other warmly in the middle of the room for several seconds.
‘Jesus, Andy, where the hell did you come from? We haven’t seen anyone else for days. Come on, get your outer clothing off and come downstairs into the warm – where we can get a hot drink into the both of you. And where are the kids?’
Mike had mistaken Jane for Brady’s wife and only when she removed her goggles and balaclava did he realise his mistake.
‘Oh, - sorry – I thought it was ……’
‘Let's get downstairs and I’ll tell all. It's a long story – much like yours I suspect!’
Their outer clothing was gathered up by Mike’s wife, Susan, and taken somewhere to dry, whilst Mike lead them downstairs into the kitchen where there was quite a crowd – Mike had a big family. They were all dressed warmly and the set up was typically ‘Mike’ – organised and efficient. A large log fire burned in the Adam-style fireplace and a huge cauldron of a steaming hot, bubbling mixture was hanging over the flames. A giant Christmas tree stood in the corner, with a huge pile of presents stacked beneath it. Brady had completely forgotten that Christmas was only a few days away – in fact he wasn’t even sure what the exact date was!
‘Susan, bring Andy and his guest a large mug of something hot – it looks like they need it. Have a seat you two, and when you’ve caught your breath we can swap stories – it should be interesting if I know you, Andy!’
However, Brady was concerned for Jane’s welfare.
‘First of all, can we just check Jane here, for frostbite? She was showing the first symptoms at lunchtime.’
Jane exposed her fingers, nose and toes for inspection and after close examination, Mike and Brady decided that the problem was only minor, and that the change of socks and gloves at lunchtime had probably done the trick. Brady decided to let her extremities warm back up of their own accord, as friction was likely to make things worse. A few glasses of brandy also helped the circulation to get going again! Nevertheless, he would need to keep a very close eye on the situation in future.
Two hours later, much rested and relieved, having been introduced to the assembled company, eleven in total, Jane and Andy were finishing their tale of adventure as they tucked into supper; a fine, rich goulash and potatoes, prepared over the open fire.
‘I’m sorry about your families,’ sympathised Mike, but to be frank, everyone here has probably lost someone, somewhere. We are the lucky ones, if you can call being marooned in this snow lucky. Our priority is to survive now and grieve later.’
Brady nodded unhappily and changed the subject.
‘What's your tale of survival then Mike? You seem to have got it all organised as usual!’
‘Had to really. It was my parent’s forty-fifth anniversary last Sunday and we had a family bash for about fifty people. After the restaurant closed there was no way of transporting everyone home – a combination of snow and booze consumed. So, the close family all stayed. My mum and dad, Susan’s mum, sister and husband, us and the four kids – all home for Christmas. By Monday morning I suspected the worse and got my arse straight into gear. We’ve all mucked in and as a result have survived and are relatively comfortable – and we have enough fuel, food and water to last a while yet. We’ve even kept the roof relatively clear of snow. My son, David, works as a roofer and has been up most days via the roof light you came in by. He created mini-avalanches and kept the access free. You can take a tour of the facilities later, if you like? Are you planning to stay here with us? You know you are very welcome. As ever.’
Brady was tempted, sorely tempted, but shook his head slowly.
‘No thanks, Mike. I want to get to Boston and away. I don’t know about Jane, though. What with her frostbite she may decide to stay – it's her decision entirely!’
Jane remained silent.
‘Well, we can talk about that later. Let me show you both around, explain a few rules and allocate your sleeping space. You will have to share a room, I’m afraid.’
By 9pm, most of the family had settled into their bedrooms for the night. Only Mike and Brady remained in the kitchen chewing the fat and talking over old times.
‘When do you think this
snow is going to stop, Andy?’ slurred Mike, having downed almost half a bottle of brandy – one item a pub was not short of!
‘Doesn’t really matter,’ replied Brady resignedly, ‘the damage is already done. It's the thaw that's going to cause most problems. My aim is to get away, survive, recover and then get back to try and help get the country back on its feet. The real hell is yet to come.’
Both men stared into the fire with a growing sense of foreboding.
Nevertheless, tomorrow would bring yet new challenges to be met and overcome, and both men were better prepared than most to meet them.
They would need to be.
Day 9 – Tamworth, Staffs – 7:30pm
Jeff and Lyndsey Hyne were marooned in their factory unit close to Tamworth. They had been there since the previous Monday morning, when they made it into work ahead of the main snowy chaos. They were now wishing that they had stayed at home. By rights, they should be at a campsite near Marbella in their motorhome – but there was no chance of that now. The motorhome was parked outside the unit and was totally immersed in snow. The ferry to Santander had never sailed and all hope of returning home, let alone escaping to Spain, had long drifted away.
The pair were in a sorry state but, like many people in their situation – i.e. trapped in the work environment – there was not much more that they could do. On that fateful Monday, it seemed that the snow would be reasonably short-lived and that a return to their house in a small village alongside the M42 would be a formality. They had ensured that their employees all got away from work safely – those that even made it in – and, as a result, had been on their own for over a week!
How they had survived this long was nothing short of a miracle. Perhaps the fact that they were both fit and healthy helped – but even that wouldn’t keep them alive indefinitely. Their resources were running low and the incessant cold was slowly, but surely, wearing them down. It was only a matter of time before they succumbed if the snow continued to fall.
Jeff had recognised their predicament fairly rapidly. They were unable to drive their powerful 4WD out of the small business park on the first evening. There was a sharp slope up to the exit and the vehicle couldn’t quite make it – sliding back into the car park. As a consequence, the first night was spent in a cold office – although heated as electricity was still connected at that time. By the morning, hungry and beginning to be alarmed by their situation, they were greeted by six inches of snow and a big decision to make. Either walk out for help, or dig in for a siege.
The main obstacles for attempting a ‘run for home’ were twofold. Firstly, was a lack of proper clothing. They were both keen and proficient skiers, having a second home in the French Alps and knew very well the severe dangers of going out into a blizzard without suitable protective equipment. Secondly, was location. They were in a small trading estate of twelve units that was six miles from the closest habitation. Their home was ten miles distant – far too far to attempt a walk-out!
Therefore, they decided to sit it out and made themselves as comfortable as possible for the second night, thinking that they would be rescued or that the snow would stop by that first Wednesday. Of course, it didn’t, and Jeff had to make plans for their survival, which involved more than just cowering in his office.
On that Wednesday, both Jeff and Lyndsey set about devising a scheme to enable their own survival. They had seen the PM on television and concluded that no one was coming to their aid in the short-term. If nothing else, Jeff and Lyndsey knew how to organise themselves. Their electrical contracting business was highly successful and this was due in no small part to their efficient and pro-active management style. Using their business skills, they set about protecting themselves.
First on the agenda was to find and set up a secure, warm and viable shelter within the factory unit. It was a large, triple unit and after a comprehensive review, they decided on the first floor office which Jeff usually occupied. It wasn’t too large to keep warm, had only one external wall and, more importantly, an adjoining washroom/toilet. This they made their base and spent an hour boarding up the window, preparing an area to sleep and rest and then searching the unit for anything useful.
They found plenty. Lyndsey had encouraged Jeff to diversify and one of their contracts involved loft insulation for OAPs sponsored by the local council. As a result, there were hundreds of rolls of roof insulation lying in the stores. Space Blanket, Roll and Board littered the unit. It didn’t take Jeff very long to design the ‘bedroom’. Choosing an internal wall, he firstly lined the floor by laying an area twelve feet square with foil covered Space roll, three layers thick. He then built up a ‘wall’ of rolls, upended and stacked on each other to about four feet high – leaving one side open for entry/exit. Over the top he laid insulating board layered with Space blanket – this was three feet thick when complete. There was a roll overhanging the entrance and spare rolls stashed inside the sleeping area, which would block the exposed end at night-time. When he'd finished he stood back and admired his handiwork.
‘It's a bit like an igloo in foil and rock wool, really. Can I leave you to personalise the inside whilst I go and investigate the other factory units? There must be something we can use – food, supplies – anything really. After that, can you start thinking how we can get some water stored up here? We might lose the supply if it gets very cold.’
Jeff left Lyndsey to scavenge around the working area to try to find ‘soft furnishings’ for the interior of the ‘igloo’. She used sofa cushions for pillows and curtains for sheets and blankets, and a couple of small coffee tables were employed as bedside cabinets for storage. She was delighted with the result and by the time she had finished almost everything that might be of use from around the office was stashed inside the impromptu shelter.
Meanwhile, Jeff was investigating the other factory units in the park. There were a dozen in all. Jeff’s company took up three and another three were vacant – a sign of the times really. The other six consisted of a camping supplies outlet, a furniture storage facility, a vehicle mechanic, a satellite installer, a pet supplies company and best of all – a private-function catering firm. It was this last unit that he decided to investigate first. He dressed in the best gear that he could find and then had a bright idea! Why didn’t he break into the camping supplies first, and kit himself out properly? He stepped out into the blizzard with a small, but heavy iron sledgehammer in his gloved hand. Walking across the parking area, Jeff approached the small factory unit in about eighteen inches of snow. Every unit, when closed, had a metal shutter pulled down to cover the frontage and when combined with a burglar alarm system linked to a security firm, not one of the small companies had ever suffered a break in! Not until today of course!
Jeff wasted no time smashing the hefty padlock with the sledgehammer and rolled up the shutter to reveal the glass frontage of the camping shop. The small front door was locked of course, but once again Jeff used the hammer to break the central lock and force his way in. The alarm screeched annoyingly, but Jeff ignored it and continued his search – the police were definitely not coming! Shutting what remained of the door behind him, he surveyed the shop by the light of the reflected snow through the plate glass window. It was indeed packed with really useful items essential to their survival – clothing, camping GAZ, water containers, cooking utensils, tents and blow up lilos. He spent fifteen minutes walking around the unit making a mental note of what he intended to borrow / steal / purchase in the owners absence.
Naturally, he knew J B Hill, the owner, very well – but nevertheless left a brief note of explanation, with his credit card details, by the main till near the entrance. His next job was to get properly kitted out in protective clothing. He chose long johns, warm lumberjack-style shirts, padded trousers, roll neck sweaters and the best anoraks he could find. He finished the get-up with thick woollen socks, heavy climbing boots, balaclava, gloves and bobble hat. He then selected a similar set of clothing for Lyndsey and carried
the bundle back to his own factory unit.
She had done a fantastic job with the igloo and Jeff rewarded her with the clothing he’d ‘borrowed’. She quickly changed and they took half an hour to discuss their next moves. Geoff had good news:
‘I found water storage – twenty five litre plastic containers – if we fill about a dozen, that should last us a fair while. I’ll fetch over a double blow-up camping lilo and that will make the bed really comfortable. Hopefully the electricity will last long enough to use a pump. I don’t fancy blowing one up using puff!’
Lyndsey was keen to go and have a look round the camping store herself, so after lunch they both fought their way across the fifty metres of deepening snow to the shop. They spent the next hour transferring equipment across to their shelter – with Jeff making a careful inventory for the owner. The most important find was probably the dehydrated ration packs. They looted all they could find and were intrigued to see what they tasted like. Up to now they had been living off a large snack dispenser that Jeff had had installed for his staff – but that – and the coffee vending machine – were now seriously depleted. When they had removed all they could think of, they exited the shop and pulled the shutter down to keep it secure. It wouldn’t be long before the snow blocked the frontage anyway.
Snow! The Series [Books 1-4] Page 36
