Hurricanes Hit Southern Coast, Affect Students
Within one month, two major hurricanes, Harvey and Irma, swept across coastal states in the US, causing an estimated 200 billion dollars in damage, according to ABC News. The former, a category three hurricane, hit Houston, Louisiana and other Western states, while the latter, a category four, is affecting Palm Beach, Florida and other Southeastern cities. Exonians encountered great adversity traveling to school during hurricane season, and some have family living in areas impacted by the hurricanes.
“It wasn’t just that I was scared in that moment, we were sitting there for days and days not knowing what would happen,” said Owens. “I can’t describe it, and I don’t want to experience it again.”
Prep Nahla Owens, who lives in Houston, had to rearrange her whole traveling schedule, due to the flood that made it impossible to drive to the local airport. Owen’s area was affected by heavy rainfall and flooding that came up to the second floor; worse yet, they were told not to evacuate until it was too late. “It progressed over a couple of days, it was raining and we saw the water in the lake behind our house rising slowly, we didn’t think it was going to be a big problem,” said Owens. “But then one day the sky opened up. It was a storm surge and the water just rushed in.”
In the end, Owens’ family decided to rent a car and drive all the way to Exeter, a journey which took them three days. Owens had to arrive on campus four days early; fortunately, her parents reached out to Arthur J. Cosgrove, Dean of Residential Life, who arranged for her to participate in the International Students’ Orientation. “Dean Cosgrove was very helpful, he sent an email to all the Houston families to let everyone know the situation,” she said.
The administration in general took on a proactive role by supporting students living in these regions. Melissa Mischke, the Dean of Students, and Dean Cosgrove both wrote to students who might need support. Three parents contacted Transportation Coordinator Daisy Jobarteh for additional support in arranging students’ transportation to campus. “On our end, we have drivers and vehicles at the school, so it was easy for us to assist students,” said Jobarteh. Even in cases where flights were delayed a few hours before their planned arrival, she managed to provide the students with drivers.
Similarly, many advisers reached out to students in their advisee to check on their safety. “I got a text from my adviser alongside an email from Dean Mischke,” said Senior Lillian Carden, from Palm Beach, Florida. Carden, whose younger sister Isabel was starting her first year at Exeter, lived in an area affected by mild storm surges and heavy wind. Her parents had to leave early after dropping the sisters at school, for fear of not being able to get back due to airport closure. “They got back Wednesday night, prepared all Thursday and stayed in a hotel with the furniture and the cat from Friday to Monday,” said Carden. Fortunately, though the cleaning up process took a long time, her family did not suffer any property damage.
It was an even more difficult experience for students whose houses were flooded and are still being repaired. Upper Heidi Licht, from New Orleans, Louisiana, said that water damaged the lower floor of her house, though like many others in the neighborhood, had been raised in anticipation of the hurricane. “We ended up having to rip out all of the flooring and replace the walls,” she said. “ [...] a lot of storage boxes in our garage full of my sister’s baby memories and our Christmas ornaments, some of which were as old as sixty years, were flooded and ruined.” Her parents are still fixing the downstairs and trying to replace damaged furniture. Meanwhile, Owens’ family in Houston is staying with an uncle, as their housing situation is still being sorted out.
For senior Alexis Gorfine from West Palm Beach, Florida, waiting for Hurricane Irma, which was predicted to hit last Sunday, was agonizing. The authorities had been enforcing a 3 pm curfew around her area for one week; her family prepared by bringing furniture indoors and making sure there was enough food stored. Hurricanes are no rare occurrences in this area, and residences are generally well-prepared. However, according to Gorfine, “this is probably going to be one of those hurricanes that make people realize that hurricanes are real and we have to prepare for them.”
Though this was not their first time experiencing a hurricane, many Exonians were still in shock due to the intensity of Harvey and Irma. “It wasn’t just that I was scared in that moment, we were sitting there for days and days not knowing what would happen,” said Owens. “I can’t describe it, and I don’t want to experience it again.” Though she was not there when the hurricane hit her neighborhood in Palm Beach, Carden was nevertheless struck by the consequences her family observed. “There’s a lot of construction going around in my town so the crates were swaying in the strong wind. My mom sent me pictures of trees by the street, and you can see they were flown off the path,” she said.