Babies of the ice storm, a study
A McGill researcher has followed people who were in utero during the ice storm, to discover how much influence the mother’s experience would have on their development. And it’s quite a lot.
La Presse also talked with four people who had key roles throughout the crisis.
Global looks at how the ice storm led to better disaster preparedness in Quebec.
The Journal talked to people with bad memories of that time.
There’s a retrospective on the BAnQ site.
PatrickC 10:46 on 2023-01-06 Permalink
Curious how the CBC article seems to softpedal the problems whereas La Presse makes them sound quite serious.
Kate 11:39 on 2023-01-06 Permalink
Talking to people who held responsible public jobs is bound to bring up the more serious angles of the time. There were moments when it felt like everything was going to go sideways in a way we’d never experienced here.
The closest I’ve felt to the depths of the ice storm was around mid‑March to mid‑April 2020, when we didn’t know yet how serious Covid would be or how hard the pandemic would hit us.
And yet both times, it was also sort of exciting. Something actually happening! I’ve never been sure whether this reaction is normal, or a bit sociopathic…
Ephraim 12:17 on 2023-01-06 Permalink
In the book Super Freakonomics they discuss how fetuses in utero are affected by Ramadan and in particular those conceived or in their first month of development when the mother fasts during the day. They also discuss the effects of the Spanish Flu and the development of fetuses and the medical effects for the rest of their lives. No doubt that the same will be true of those fetuses born during the pandemic. What we don’t yet know is if the effect will rebound and of course if the vaccination will in fact make their more resistant over time. As usual there are known knowns, known unknowns and of course unknown unknowns… which we obviously can’t even guess at, because well… we don’t know that we don’t know them, yet. 🙂
Tim S. 12:32 on 2023-01-06 Permalink
My grandmother was bombed during WWII while 8 months pregnant with my mother, and to her dying day attributed aspects of my mother’s personality to that experience. Anecdotal evidence, sure, but an idea that’s always been part of family lore.
@Kate: yes, the Ice Storm really prepared me for the pandemic. I remember chatting to some non-local neighbours a few days before things really got serious (early March), and they were feeling a bit weird about stocking up on groceries. Having memories of wandering empty grocery store aisles with a flashlight, I didn’t feel weird at all.