Title: Hurricanes & Haligonians Spoken Intro: For more than a century, storms have come looking for Halifax. Some brought wind. Some brought rain. Some brought waves. And some brought a whole lot of trouble. But every time the storm passed… The Haligonians were still standing. Verse 1: Back in eighteen nine tee three, The August sky turned black, A hurricane came through Halifax, And there was no holding back. They called it the Second Great August Gale, A storm that left its mark, Twenty-five lives were lost that day, And the city felt its dark. Chorus: We’re hurricanes and Haligonians, We’re wind and rain and sea, You can knock our trees down to the ground, But you won’t knock out Halifax pride in me. Hurricanes and Haligonians, We’ve seen them come and go, They can shake the harbour, They can rattle every window, But they can’t break the people of this town. Verse 2: Then came Edna in fifty-four, With winds up to one-sixty, She crossed the Maritimes And showed us what a storm could be. Then Beth came in seventy-one, And rain came pouring down, Nearly twenty-five centimetres On Halifax town. The streets became the rivers, The bridges took the strain, Beth didn’t need a mighty wind, She brought us all that rain. Chorus: We’re hurricanes and Haligonians, We’re wind and rain and sea, You can flood our streets and shake our homes, But you won’t knock out Halifax pride in me. Hurricanes and Haligonians, We’ve seen them come and go, They can shake the harbour, They can rattle every window, But they can’t break the people of this town. Verse 3: Then September twenty-nine, Two thousand three arrived, A hurricane named Juan Came roaring through the night. The trees came crashing down, The city disappeared in black, And when the morning finally came, There was no turning back. Point Pleasant lost its forest, The power lines came down, But neighbours helped their neighbours, All across the town. Chorus: We’re hurricanes and Haligonians, We’re wind and rain and sea, Juan can knock a million trees down, But he can’t knock down you and me. Hurricanes and Haligonians, We’ve learned a thing or two, When the storm comes through the front door, We’ll come together too. Verse 4: Then Dorian came calling, In twenty-nineteen, With hurricane-force winds And waves along the scene. It made its way near Halifax, And the power disappeared, Trees came down and water rose, But once again we faced our fears. From Bedford to the harbour, From Dartmouth to the shore, When Halifax gets knocked around, We know what neighbours are for. Bridge: So bring your wind, bring your rain, Bring your waves against the shore, Bring every storm the Atlantic Has ever sent before. We’ll check on our neighbours, We’ll fire up the light, We’ll tell another storm story When we gather that night. Final Chorus: We’re hurricanes and Haligonians, We’re salt and stone and sea, You can throw your worst at Halifax, But we’ll still be standing free. Hurricanes and Haligonians, From eighteen nine tee three, Through Beth and Juan and Dorian, The story’s still with me. Crowd: HALIFAX! Lead: Are we still standing? Crowd: WE’RE STILL STANDING! Lead: Are we still here? Crowd: WE’RE STILL HERE! Lead: And what happens when the next storm comes? Crowd: WE’LL DEAL WITH IT! Final Chorus: We’re hurricanes and Haligonians, Let the whole damn harbour know, You can blow your hardest, You can make your wildest show. We’re hurricanes and Haligonians, And through the years we’ve found, The storms may come from anywhere… But Halifax stands its ground. Crowd: HALIFAX! HALIFAX! HALIFAX! Spoken Outro: From the Great August Gale of eighteen nine tee -three, to Edna, Beth, Juan and Dorian… The names change. The storms change. But one thing never seems to change. The people of Halifax are still here. Hurricanes & Haligonians.
