Jun 22, 2011

A new soldering hazard

So - we had really bad storms in the Chicago area last night.  Shortly before they hit, I was under the layout, holding a soldering iron in a kinda tricky position, finishing up a DCC system connection.  The power flickered several times just then, leaving me in the dark, twisted under the layout, w/ a hot iron delicately positioned between other wiring, etc.  It was, er, an interesting moment. 

Thankfully, the flickers stabilized long enough for me to finish the connection and shut everything down.  The whole family was back in the basement soon after, while 80+ gusts and bright green lightning flashed outside.  Lots of huge branches / tree parts down afterward.