Isvintre
DANSK TEKST
Kan du huske isvintrene? Det kan vi.
I gamle dage, når vinteren var kold og isen tyk nok til at bære en bil, oplevede vi et helt nærmest magisk fænomen, hvor øen blev landfast med Fyn. Dette skete cirka hvert syvende år, men desværre har vi ikke haft fornøjelsen af denne begivenhed siden 1995. Måske er det klimaforandringer, der har ændret de naturlige forhold, som gjorde disse isvintre mulige - hvem ved.
Under en isvinter måtte vi tage sagen i egen hånd og finde alternative måder at komme til fastlandet på, da færgen ikke kunne sejle..
Et af de mange historier stammer fra vinteren 1978, hvor kulden var ekstrem og isen tyk og stabil. Når isen var sikker, samledes alle beboere, klar til at hjælpe hinanden med at transportere mælk, varer, skolebørn og pendlere til og fra øen. Det var en sand fællesindsats, og vi var som én stor familie, der trak små slæder med 40 liters mælkejunger hen over den glitrende is.
Men vi havde ikke folk nok til at transportere al mælken over til fastlandet, så en stor slæde blev bygget, og seks mand kunne trække den over isen. Det var som at danse på isen, og vi fulgte omhyggeligt de afmærkede ruter, markeret med grangrene fra vores juletræer.
Da isen på øen nåede en tykkelse af 20 cm købte Øen en ophugger-bil, der fik monteret 5 meter lange lægter under kofangerne for og bag, så den ville blive hængende, hvis den skulle droppe gennem isen.
En ung øbo blev ansat som fast chauffør på ruten. Han kørte skolebørn, pendlere, foderstoffer, slagtesvin, fyringsolie, såsæd og meget andet til og fra Bjørnø. Alt gik glat indtil en morgen i marts, hvor isen begyndte at gynge under bilen på turen tilbage fra Faaborg. Chaufføren indkaldte lodsejerne til møde og ønskede at stoppe bilkørslen. Dog blev han overtalt til at køre en formiddagstur, da der netop den dag skulle leveres svin til slagteriet.
For sikkerhedens skyld blev taget og dørene på bilen skåret af, så den unge øbo hurtigt kunne komme ud, hvis noget gik galt. Alt var klar til grisetransporten, men bønderne mente, der skulle køres en prøvetur uden slæde og grise. 200 meter fra land brød baghjulene gennem isen. Øboen kom hurtigt ud, hurtigere end nogensinde, og bilen blev hængende på den bageste lægte. Bilen kunne ikke reddes, og da isen brød op, gled bilen ud til havs og gik til bunds midt ude på Faaborg Fjord. Den blev senere hejst op med en kran og sendt til ophugger. Gad vide mon hvad den var værd!
Ice Winters
ENGLISH VERSION
Do you remember the ice winters? We certainly do.
In the old days, when winter was cold, and the ice was thick enough to support a car, we experienced an almost magical phenomenon, where the island became connected to Fyn.
This happened about every seventh year, but unfortunately, we haven't had the pleasure of this event since 1995. Perhaps it's climate change that has altered the natural conditions that made these ice winters possible – who knows?
During an ice winter, we had to take matters into our own hands and find alternative ways to reach the mainland since the ferry couldn't sail.
One of the many stories comes from the winter of 1978 when the cold was extreme, and the ice was thick and stable. When the ice was safe, all residents gathered, ready to help transport milk, goods, schoolchildren, and commuters to and from the island. It was a true collective effort, and we were like one big family, pulling small sleds with 40-liter milk churns across the glistening ice.
But we didn't have enough people to transport all the milk to the mainland, so a large sled was built, and six men could pull it across the ice. It was like dancing on ice, and we carefully followed the marked routes, indicated by fir branches from our Christmas trees.
When the ice on the island reached a thickness of 20 cm, the island purchased a decommissioned car, with 5-meter-long beams attached to the front and rear bumpers to prevent it from sinking, if it should break through the ice.
A young islander was hired as the regular driver on the route. He drove schoolchildren, commuters, livestock feed, slaughter pigs, heating oil, sowing seed, and much more to and from Bjørnø. Everything went smoothly until one morning in March when the ice began to sway under the car on the return trip from Faaborg. The driver called the landowners for a meeting and wanted to stop driving the car. However, he was persuaded to run a morning tour, as it was the day to deliver pigs to the slaughterhouse.
For safety's sake, the roof and doors of the car were cut off so the young islander could quickly get out if something went wrong. Everything was ready for the pig transport, but the farmers believed that a test drive should be made without a sled and pigs. 200 meters from the shore, the rear wheels broke through the ice. The islander got out quickly, faster than ever, and the car hung on the rear beam. The car couldn't be saved, and as the ice broke up, the car slid out to sea and sank in the middle of Faaborg Fjord. It was later hoisted up with a crane and sent to the scrapyard. I wonder how much it was worth!