Maine native Bobbi Walton, who now lives in the U.S. Virgin Islands, was bracing Tuesday for the arrival of Category 5 hurricane Irma.
Walton is from Houlton, but graduated from Brewer High School in 1987, and moved to St. Thomas nearly five years ago. She spent the day finishing preparations, which included stocking up on supplies, making an emergency plan with her co-workers and stockpiling water.
“Down here, you can’t stock your fridge because if the power goes out, here there is no snowbank,” she said. “You stock up on Carnation milk, you stock up on water: Water to drink and gallons of water to cook with. Hopefully, you have a gas stove.”
Walton worked at Eastern Maine Medical Center for 19 years as a surgical technician and also served in the Maine Air Guard’s 101st Air Refueling Wing in Bangor for 13 years.
She now lives on the north side of St. Thomas in a cement block home, and spent part of Tuesday getting every bucket she could find and filling it with water from her cistern, a basement tank that collects rainwater, which she will use for everything except drinking, if needed.
The County is pleased to feature content from our sister company, Bangor Daily News. To read the rest of “Mainer in St. Thomas prepares for Category 5 hurricane Irma,” an article by contributing Bangor Daily News staff writer Nok-Noi Ricker, please follow this link to the BDN online.
