As Hurricane Katrina left the devastated Gulf Coast and continued its push into the inland United States last night, people continued their efforts of relief from the destruction and Katrina kept dishing it out.
In Memphis and around campus, damage was fairly minimal compared to that of other areas, but still enough to cause a stir.
One area resident, Marti Calvert, sustained serious property damage at her Patterson home when a large tree uprooted and collapsed across her front yard late last night, crushing two cars.
“It could have been so much worse,” Calvert said. “Compared to the Gulf Coast, this is just an inconvenience.”
Many University of Memphis staff and students seem to have a similar view of the situation, but that doesn’t mean they’re taking things lightly.
“Maintenance crews and housing crews have been working extremely hard,” said Daniel Armitage, the associate dean of students. “We anticipate having most major problems solved by the end of the day.”
Armitage spent the better part of Tuesday dealing with a power outage in Richardson Towers, the U of M’s most populated residence hall. In addition to lost electricity, the dorm also incurred damage from high winds on its north side as well as water leaks in the stairwells.
“Part of the challenge is that all of our offices are in Richardson,” Armitage said. “It’s made it difficult to meet the students’ needs.”
The Residence Life and Dining Services office, which is located in Richardson, has continued operating normally, despite not having computers, air conditioning or electricity all day Tuesday.
Power was restored to Richardson late Tuesday afternoon.
Besides Richardson, there have been other minor damages around campus, most of which are expected to be fully repaired within the week.
Frederica Claybrooks, a resident advisor at Smith Hall, reported a fallen tree in front of West Hall. Strong nighttime winds apparently split the tree, which didn’t strike the residence hall.
The FedEx Institute of Technology reported some damage to its north side caused by high winds, but not enough to keep the building out of operation during the day.
“It’s definitely a challenge,” Armitage said. “But when you think about what others closer to the coast have been dealing with, it’s hard to complain.”
Several areas south of the railroad tracks and west of Patterson Street have reported lost power, most likely due to a shortage from a power grid near campus.
