Foxy's
winter adventures
Part 110

  
roof

Dangerous snow and ice on the roof

March 2018. On this picture I was not so happy. I have showed the beauty of winter but here I want to tell about the danger in winter. We have to drive careful in winter when the roads are icy.

And we have to watch out for reindeer or moose on the road. The reindeer are almost every day on the E4 road north of our town. Sadly a reindeer was hit by a car and died :-(

We have to walk careful so we will not slip and fall. I use spike shoes and many people use these too.

We have to be careful when we will ski in the mountains. There can be avalanches.

Here I will to tell about avalanches from the roof. In the north of Sweden the snow gets hard. If there is a lot of snow laying on sloping surfaces, such as outdoor roofs, and the weight of the snow exceeds the friction between the snow and the roof, the snow will suddenly slide down like an avalanche. Also icicles are very dangerous if these are falling down.
There are warning signs by the houses there the snow can glide from the roofs. I think there is no good word in English for "snöras" So I translate it: "Risk for snow gliding and icicles".
2018-03-27. They took workers in a movable aerial platform to the houses. The worker could take away the snow and ice from the edge of the roof.
2018-03-27. The worker also took away the ice and the icicles.
2018-03-27. There was much snow on the roof.
2018-03-27. The man had to use a sledgehammer to get away the ice. The roof is made sheet metal.
2018-03-27. At the right: The work is done. At the left: The snow and ice is still there.
2018-03-27. A man is watching so no people come out of the door or walk near the house.
2018-03-27.This little dog came with his mom out of a door. Then the watchman called the worker to stop throwing snow for a while until they were safe on the other side of the road.
2018-03-27. The snow that's coming down is hard.
2018-03-27. Here you can see how much snow an ice there is on the roof.
2018-03-27.
2018-03-27.
2018-03-27. The worker is coming down. The work is done.
2018-03-27. Ove was on his way to the grocery shop and talked a while with the watchman.
2018-03-27. Ove passing the new kindergarten.

The next day

2018-03-28. We came home from town. Ove looked out of the window. He saw snow sliding down from the roof.
2018-03-28. After this more snow was coming down.
2018-03-28. After a little while I was looking out of the window. Then while looking out I saw a big avalanche coming from for a big part of the roof. It sounded. RUMBLE !

Snow was sliding down from the roof like on this picture. This happened so fast so I did not get a real picture. But the sliding snow on this fake picture looked like that.

2018-03-28. The snow and ice hit a bike. Fortunately no people or dogs were there.
2018-03-28. The maintenance took away the snow by the doorstep.
2018-03-28. The dangerous part of the snow after the earlier avalanche was still lying over the edge of the roof. It could fall down at any time.
2018-03-28. The people who live in the houses blocked the area in front of the houses. The needed benches to tie the strings.
2018-03-28. The dog Ossie was on his walk again.
2018-03-28. A picture taken before the avalanche started.
2018-03-28. This picture taken after the avalanche happened.
2018-03-28. Also here, at the end of the houses snow was coming down.
2018-03-29. The day after the avalanches the workers with the aerial platform came back.
2018-03-29. They tried to take away more snow.
2018-03-29. Building and repairing of the hospital in the distance.
2018-03-29. He could take away more snow, but it was not enough.
2018-03-29. They needed a worker who was skilled to walk on the roof. He could take away more snow.
2018-03-29. The worker had a lifeline. He had a real good sense of balance and was skilled for the work.
2018-03-29. Ossie on a walk again. He wanted to go to the doorstep but mom had him on the leash.
2018-03-29. The worker took away much snow.
2018-03-29. Also this day there was a watchman down in the street.
2018-03-29. We should eat but I could not eat as long he was walking up there.
2018-03-29. A close-up picture of his harness.
2018-03-29. He walked careful down in the deep snow.
2018-03-29. After he took away the snow he made the rest of the snow flat with the spade. That prevented the rest of the snow should slide. It was impossible to clean the whole roof with only one worker. But he made the roof safer.
2018-03-29. The man in the platform brought him on the top of the roof.
2018-03-29. Here he is at another place on the roof.
2018-03-29.
2018-03-29. Now he was at the end of the roof.
2018-03-29.
2018-03-29. When he was ready, the man in the aerial platform picked him up again.
2018-03-29.
2018-03-29. Almost on the ground again. Now the workers should go home. They did a real good work.

Wilhelmina Schedin 2018-04-03