University of Miami - Ibis Yearbook (Coral Gables, FL)

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LIFESTYLES HURRICANE KATRINA onpe, tWIce, X'S a HURRI CANE Students see upside to damaging storms: days off school PHOTO BY LAUREN KNIGHTNBIS STAFF Knocked down: Junior Trish Cooper gets in touch with Mother Earth while being floored by the hurricane's damage. PHOTO BY TAHIRA MATHENABIS STAFF Say cheese! A student is photographed in front of the impassable walkway at the Rock. DANIELLA SUAREZHBIS STAFF Hurricane Season 2005 was one for the record books. With the formation of Tropical Storm Zeta, this hurricane season brought the most tropical activity since 185 1. University of Miami students prepared for three hurricane threats this season: Katrina, Rita and Wilma. For many, hurricanes were a first; others have experienced extreme weather in the past. Christopher Hooten is from Kansas City, a region accustomed to extreme weather, particularly tornadoes. He asserts that he is desensitized to hurricanes since they are such an extended process considering that tornadoes appear without much warning. I'm not as afraid of hurricanes as much as respectful of their potential, he added. Though many agree that hurricanes can be scary, they do have their upsides. Kids all get off from school so those of us who study all too often get to have fun dorm parties, Tracy Robinson said. It is the best bonding experience I think. Hurricanes are a good opportunity to get some extra sleep and just relax a little bit, Emily McCollum said. UM students take comfort that the dorms are the safest places to be during a storm. While many Miami residents lost power for days, on-campus students only lost electricity for minutes. Preparations by these students were minimal, consisting of moving furniture and appliances and stopping by the C-Store for last-minute snacks. Everyone stocked up with water, Clark Rinehart observed. And the girls stocked up with chocolate. Off-campus students deal with the hurricane differently. Many were inconvenienced during Hurricane Katrina, with classes lasting until late in the afternoon the day the storm hit. Some even got caught in the infamous Miami traffic in the midst of hurricane-strength winds and pounding rain. Katrina taught everyone a lesson, and for Rita, the University was better prepared and cancelled classes ahead of time. Commuter student Alessandra Giannini jokingly said that Hurricane, snowstorm, tsunami, they're all great ways to get a few days of vacation. I would definitely prefer a snowstormeat least you can build a snowman afterwards or hit passing strangers with snowballs. Yes, hurricanes are a pain, and for many students new to South Florida, they have also been an interesting experience. But the truth is that though hurricanes have downsides, they have proven to be a great time for University of Miami students, especially those living on campus. A couple days off from class, hanging with friends, pigging out, lounging e1 don't know about you, but that sounds like THE life to me.

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DARA SOLOMONABIS STAFF Hurricane Katrina was the eleventh named tropical storm, fourth hurricane, third major hurricane, and frrst Category 5 hurricane of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. When it hit Miami as a Category 1 storm on August 25, 2005 it was predicted to grow, and grow it did -- by the time it hit the Central Gulf Coast near Buras-Triumph, Louisiana, it was a strong Category 4, and gearing up to become a 5. As the storm's eye neared New Orleans, City Mayor C. Ray Nagin called the hrst-ever mandatory evacuation for the entire city. Many, however, weren't able to evacuate for reasons beyond their control. Katrina's storm surge broke the levee system that surrounds New Orleans, flooding the city, and bringing with it one of the greatest humanitarian disasters in United States history. Other parts of Louisiana, and coastal parts of Alabama and Mississippi were all directly affected by the storm, with similarly disastrous results. The official death toll surpassed 1,300 in mid-November. Over 273,000 people were left homeless due to the storm. Damage caused by Katrina in New Orleans alone is estimated at $70 to $130 billion; the storm therefore surpasses Hurricane Andrew as the most expensive natural disaster in U.S. history. President Bush, after taking an aerial tour of the city, said, It's as if the entire Gulf Coast were obliterated by the worst kind of weapon you can imagine. And now we're going to go try to comfort people in that part of the world. 5,000 New Orleans' residents were still missing or unaccounted for as of mid-November. t Sources: wikipedia.org, whitehousegov PHOTOS COURTESY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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PHOTO BY TAHIRA MATHENABIS STAFF Crushed spin The great banyan tree that stood on the University Center Rock collapsed during Hurricane Katrina. This giant has been home to Iron Arrow ceremonies.