From Galilee (and Warwick) R.I.

My name is Carol (Moulton) Isacco and I was 6-years old when Hurricane Carol hit. Everyone used to kid me afterwards about Carol being a "Nice name for a Monster!"

I remember that day vividly. My father had built a house on the beach in Galilee in 1953 which we lived in for 25 years (from May until we closed it up in October and returned to our home in Warwick).

I used to love to rise early, around 6 a.m. and go for a swim with my father before he left for Providence to work. It was a typically beautiful morning and the water was very calm and we went for our morning swim. We returned to the house which was directly on the ocean (no dunes like there are now). My mother began preparing breakfast for the family. There were 7 of us, 5 girls and my parents.

My father decided at the last minute to take the day off from work and enjoy the beautiful day on the beach. Little did he know how horrific it would turn out !!! I remember as my mother was putting toast in the toaster and scrambling eggs how the water began turning quite dark and the sky began looking quite angry. My father turned on the radio to get a weather report. By the time he heard what was coming, it was quite windy and rain had begun falling and the water was just about black in color.

He yelled to all of us to drop everything and head out the back door to the car (a 1947 Ford Woody). It was nearly impossible as the wind was so strong. We formed a line and held onto each others hands with my mother at one end and my father at the other. My sister, Judy, the oldest (13) was upset at having her scarf fly off and away.

We made it to the car safely, although in a slight panic. My mother's guardian lived across the street where the Landing Restaurant is today. By this time, the water had risen almost to the house and my father's first concern was to save his family; and since the road was becoming flooded where Champlain's is now, we couldn't take the chance of going over towards the breechway to get her Guardian, George Hazard (he was well known in that area as he owned much of the land).

As we headed up Sand Hill Cove Road there were cars stuck in muddy water, there were others trying to get out, but many people either did not want to leave or were still sleeping and didn't know about "Carol." We made it to the main road and drove towards Warwick. It took us 3 hours, dodging tree limbs, torrential rains and howling winds to get to our home in Warwick and as we drove into the driveway which went down hill under the house, the car gave out just at that point.

Later that day we headed back to Galilee to see the outcome. I still had the picture in my mind of how scary it was leaving there that morning. The road was washed out, so my father and a few other men walked in and returned quite teary eyed. The house was still standing, although the first floor was filled with mud and the water line upstairs was about a foot high. The toast was still in the toaster though.

The windows were all gone and the frames were bent inward. The beach was full of debris. Basically we lost everything. I remember I had $5 in a desk drawer on the first floor and was upset over losing that much money.

My mother's guardian was safe. He slept through most of it on the second floor of his house and when he awoke he saw a sail from a boat pass by his bedroom window. When the water receded he rowed a boat over to the American Red Cross in Narragansett as he was on the board there.

We heard several stories from neighbors (three of whom sat in our 1953 Studebaker in our driveway and rode out the storm). I don't remember if that car ever ran again. There were several people who were caught in the Galilee Beach Club and had frightening stories to relate. We would have lived if we had stayed, although it would not have been a very pleasant experience. I had nightmares for years after that as I watched the water heading at great speed towards the house.

One interesting fact is that my sister's scarf was hanging from a fence post which enclosed the back yard. We also had a sign on the house which read "Moonbeam" which had come off of an old fishing boat. My father found it on his walk in and that was able to be salvaged. It now hangs on my mother's home in Warwick Neck.

So, all in all, it was a very frightening experience for a 6-year-old, especially when she shared the same name. I say it is one day in my life which I will never/ever forget, it made quite an impact on my life.

I loved your article and I do have the two books on the storm which I have probably looked at hundreds of times, shown my children and now will share them with my grandchildren.

Carol (Moulton) Isacco

from South Providence, RI

My most vivid memories as a nine-year-old was the giant trees in the field in back of our house falling and the house shaking as they hit the ground. My mother kept telling me that this wasn't as bad ad the'38 hurricane but it seemed very bad to me. We lost a chimney and a front window that terrible day......but that was minor compared to the destruction we witnessed the following day in Oakland Beach. As if that wasn't bad enough....Hurricane Edna gave us a real scare aabout 11 says later but veered out to sea, leaving minor damage.

Bill4Angel@aol.com, July 19, 2003

from Somerville, MA

I was living in Somerville Mass and my father and mother were both working at the time. My father worked for Hood's milk so he had to work but it would show it's advantages.

I was 8 years old and my brother was 11 at the time. We were below one of the ten hills of Somerville so we were partially protected but still the damage was impressive. As the winds increased the lights flickered but stayed on until a big pine tree diagonally across the street came down and took out all the power lines and we were in the dark.

Saint Ann's church was right up the street and the janitor for the church lived across the street. After the power went out the winds got stronger and the copper sheathing on Saint Ann's steeple started pealing off of the church tower. The priests came over in the wind and rain but the janitor could do little. After awhile all the sheathing had been stripped away and the oak boards were exposed on the steeple. Now the old elm trees in the neighborhood started coming down and we went inside the house for protection.

The aftermath was no school for several weeks because the power was out for almost 8 days. Right after the world started to become normal Hurricane Edna hit and we lost the power again for several more days. We lucked out because my father was working at Hood's milk so he brought home dry ice every day to keep our refrigerator cold. He got kerosene from the railroad along with several lamps so we say around in the glow of the lamps and just read books. Back then we still had local grocery stores because the "supermarket" had not really started up. As for Saint Ann's the damaged was so bad they had to remove about the top 25 feet of the brick steeple along with the top wooden framework and replaced it with a metal framework and new copper sheathing.

It took weeks to clear away all the downed trees but it makes me wonder how bad it would be if a storm of this magnitude hit the local Boston area today. Back then there were few cars on the street and most of the people used public transportation. Nowadays with everyone having a car, the lack of working gas stations would cause some serious troubles plus everyone would try to get to a supermarket.

Don Armstrong cavman@lighthorse-scavenger.org
604th Trans / 52 CAB, Pleiku, Apr / July 68
D Troop 3/5 Cav, Bearcat / Dong Tam, July 68 May 69
http://www.lighthorse-scavenger.org

Eastern Point, Groton, Ct.

Very much enjoyed your "Carol" website. As you know by now I am doing a commemorative book (for Blue Hill Observatory) on Carol.

I was also 13 years old at the time of the storm. I was spending the summer at my grandparents home at Eastern Point, Groton Ct. I too, spent most of the storm outside (until the waves began crashing into my house). I remember the eye of the storm passing overhead and the wind shifting violently to the opposite direction. The storm is the reason I've always been interested in the weather and am now Director of this historic weather station.

Attached is a picture that I took of Eastern Point (Groton) just after the storm passed...note how high the water had risen...8 to 12 feet of mean high tide in most areas.

Charlie Orloff, June 9, 2003