Hurricane Francine: first hurricane to hit the coast since Ida
November 4, 2024
By: Keshawn Wright, Staff Writer
By: Anaya Dennis, Staff Writer
Students across New Orleans were rocked by their first hurricane since Hurricane Ida in 2021. Hurricane Francine made landfall on the southern coast of Louisiana on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, around 6 p.m.
With wind gusts reaching up to 90 mph and rainfall accumulating up to 8 inches in the New Orleans metro area, the storm caused widespread flooding and power outages across New Orleans, leaving many college students scrambling for safety.
“With no electricity, no air conditioning, and uncertain weather conditions, we had to act quickly,” said Connor Meigs, a residential assistant at Loyola. “Even though we didn’t have any AC or power, I’m glad the people in charge did everything they could to keep us safe, especially because it was hot with a lot of chaos for a day and a half with again no power.”
In response to the uncertainty surrounding the storm, several universities, including Xavier University, Tulane University, and Dillard University, announced that they would close their campuses on the Wednesday afternoon prior to landfall. Classes also moved online on the Thursday after the storm to accommodate students and staff who evacuated or were sheltering off-campus.
Students who stayed behind had to balance classwork and their storm preparations as they got ready to shelter in place in their dorms. Xavier University of Louisiana provided students who remained on campus with snacks and water.
“I had a good time with the other students here at the school who decided to come out of their rooms and listen to music and joke around with us Xavier students,” said Tyrin Wiltz, a Xavier student who lives on Loyola’s campus.
While Xavier’s campus only lost power for a few hours, many off-campus students struggled with longer outages. Local power companies worked an additional two days after the storm to restore power in some parts of Uptown, particularly where Xavier students were housed at Loyola dorms.
“The timeline remains unclear for when the school will be back to its full regular schedule,” said Louis Barnes at the time, who is a residential life staff member at Loyola. Loyola’s campus sustained roof damage and water intrusion in several buildings.
Xavier students housed at The Residencies at LSU Health also remained without power for over 48 hours.
“LSU’s generator doesn’t provide enough power for the whole building – only the fire alarms,” said Aniya Wooden, the graduate hall director of residential education. She was in one of the buildings that saw extended power outages.
Some students said they felt safer evacuating before the storm increased to a Category II hurricane.
“I left because of the unknown, the fear that something small could turn into something big with lasting effects,” said Faith Pierre, a Xavier student from California who went home for the hurricane. “My mother felt safer with me coming home.”
Some students’ evacuation plans did not require traveling quite that far. Gabrielle Heart, a Tulane student from Virginia decided to evacuate with a friend in Mississippi. “I left for the hurricane because I didn’t want the storm to turn into something really bad and get stuck somewhere I don’t live full time,” she said.
As the storm passed, the focus quickly shifted to recovery efforts. University administrations immediately assessed the damage and coordinated with local authorities to provide resources for students affected by the storm. Many off-campus students returned to their campuses to access food, water, and Wi-Fi, as many parts of the greater New Orleans area were still without power.
