Mon 23rd July: 10

Tai Po on Tuesday morning - not too bad considering

Well that was a surprise!  Not just for me but for the whole of Hong Kong I’m sure, as we’d all been lulled into a false sense of security about the Tropical Storm that would be passing south of Hong Kong.  I’m just grateful that I had stayed at home, but even then I wasn’t prepared for the incredible force of the wind, or the rain made even heavier by the sea spray that dumped an additional load onto the house and garden.  I didn’t even go to bed, but lay on top in my clothes, ready to leap into action if required.  I realised the futility of that idea when at one point I went out onto the balcony to check on the garden enclosure (completely destroyed), and the act of opening the door to the outside sucked all the windows open on the other side of the room.  From then on I knew that whatever was happening outside I could only watch, and hope that the puppies would be OK.  I was kept occupied inside when I discovered the waterfall that was cascading down the stairs from the roof (with door closed) and kept adding to the pile of towels and bath mats to try and soak it all up.

The dogs in the house were remarkable quiet and well behaved, especially as I had added a whole bunch of puppies to the group, those that would normally sleep outside (under shelter of course).  So in the end it was just a handful that had to sit out the typhoon with minimal shelter, and while they appeared a bit shell shocked first thing in the morning, they’re fine now.

I’d left the call-out for fosters too late, not thinking for a minute that it would be necessary, and a huge thanks to those who turned up at the last minute to take some dogs home.  An even bigger thanks has to go to our volunteer Roni, who left work to go to Tai Po for the night.  She and her favourite dog, Oscar, had a sleepover in what we call our “Human Room”, the only one that isn’t full of dogs, and while I would have considered this an adventure about fifty years ago it’s not my idea of a fun night out any more.  Amazingly there was no real damage done and all the dogs are safe.  Good work Roni!

Like many others’ I’ve been clearing and tidying and repairing from the early hours, so I haven’t had a chance to write my blog until now.  I hope I have something more interesting to write about tomorrow, but that’s it for now.