Owen

Tiverton, Rhode Island

I lived in Fall River at the time, and worked in Providence, in the then-Industrial National Bank building (now the Art-Deco granite building in the Fleet complex). Most of the people who worked with us left earlier when the snow started getting heavy, until there were three of us left. We headed for our cars, spotted the heavy traffic trying to get on I-95, and ducked in to Christopher's Deli for a beer and a sandwich until the traffic eased up. When we got out of the deli, the same car was in the same place on the 95 on-ramp, so we headed back to the office, hoping the snow would back off and the traffic would ease. We spent the next three nights sleeping on the floor in that office. We knew the President and chief financial officer of First Federal Bank across the street, and they let us in to use the shower. We also all went out to Winkler's Steak House in the thick of the storm on the third day, which was surprisingly open for business (I guess they got stuck there and figured they'd feed the people). Anyway, one of us three lived in Providence, and we hiked up there on the third day after the snow stopped, and spent a couple of days with him, finally hitchhiking back to Fall River when that part of I-195 outside the Washington Bridge opened up. I remember walking through all the abandoned cars on the bridge.

Originally posted in the alt.rhode_island newsgroup, November 11, 2000, and February 6, 2003.