The Hofstra
Chronicle Nemo CHILLS with Hofstra Hempstead, NY Vol.78 | Issue 14
Thursday
February 14, 2013
Keeping the Hofstra Community informed since 1935
“The transformer right outside of my house started blowing up, giving off almost fireworks.” - Sam Little
A heavy blanket of snow slammed Hofstra this weekend from Winter Storm Nemo.
By Jesse Bade Staff Writer
T
he snowstorm from this past weekend scathed the New England and New York area with several feet of snow, following the devastation of Superstorm Sandy less than four months ago. The storm, nicknamed “Nemo,” struck Friday night and lasted into Saturday. While it forced many students to remain inside their homes, others were left stranded. Karen Chlosta, freshman, braved the storm for a concert in New York City despite warnings to stay indoors. “I went to go see Jukebox the Ghost,” Chlosta said. Although the concert ended by 11:00 p.m. and
Chlosta left Penn Station by 1:00 a.m., she and her friends did not return to campus for another three hours. “I think we started heading home around one and then we did not get home until around 4:30,” Chlosta said. Chlosta said that a Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) conductor told them that in order to get to Mineola, they would have to transfer trains at Jamaica. Originally, the wait was supposed to be 10 minutes. But 10 minutes quickly turned into one hour. Before they knew it, the train was cancelled. They were stranded. “We waited probably a solid half-hour [to] 45 minutes and then
we decided to take a cab,” Chlosta said. The cab ride took approximately two-and-a-half hours as they traveled through the storm. “I think because of the time it was out and the road conditions -I mean the streets weren’t plowed at all -- it made [the cab ride] a little more nerve-racking,” Chlosta said. However, she and her friends made it back to campus safely. Chlosta said that the concert was worth it. Other students experienced similar problems as a result of the snow. Britni Hicks, senior, was not able to go to her internship at Cosmopolitan Magazine as a result of the storm. Hicks said she was sent home
Zach Mongillo/The Chronicle
early on Friday by her employer as an attempt to prevent people from experiencing snow issues. Her Saturday shift was cancelled completely. “My boss for my Saturday internship is from Connecticut and she was snowed in,” Hicks said. “She contacted me Friday night and told me not to come, and our roads were barely plowed so we could barely get out.” Hicks lives in a house off campus. She and her housemates bunkered down in response to the storm warnings and waited it out in the comfort of their home. Others did not have that luxury. Samuel Little, senior, stayed at Dempster Hall for a portion of the
storm because the power went out in his house. “We literally saw our power going out,” Little said. “The transformer right outside my house started blowing up, giving off almost fireworks.” He and a few of his friends then went to Dempster Hall to charge up their electronics and wait for the power to return. They were able to use Dempster because they are WRHU members with swipe access. Little commented on how impressed he was that the power was back in two hours, rather than the three weeks it took after Sandy.
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