Hurricane Sandy: a first hand perspective of being stranded in New York

Mary Earp
November 5, 2012

Watching the news it looked horrible—massive floods, thousands without power and damage beyond the hopes of repair. While Hurricane Sandy hit land, I sat with the Mock Trial Team watching the news, awaiting what was to come next.

We were supposed to go home on Monday, Oct. 29, but Sandy had other plans for us. She left us stranded in New York for five more days than expected. Although this put a damper on our plans, the worst was when the hurricane actually hit land.

We were flipping through the channels, watching the various news stations, and Sandy was everywhere. Newscasters raved about the immense damage that she left in her path, and we worried about what would happen. We thought we were going to lose power, and I honestly worried about what shape we would be when the hurricane passed.

“It was concerning to see all of the high winds and damage to surrounding buildings,” Adam Lee, senior, said.

Matt Kellogg and Jessica Smith, our coaches, were worried, too. They had us taking preventative measures like buying food and water in case we couldn’t go out. Along with this, we took other action.

“One of our chaperones made us fill the bathtubs with water in case the piping broke,” Allisen Haggard, senior, said.

Although we took these precautions, among others, they proved unnecessary. Somehow we were blessed with good luck, and Sandy slid on by us with nearly no damage to our area in Brooklyn. Despite our luck, many others faced a much worse fate. Floods ruined houses and damaged stores, there were mass power outages and some even died in the hurricane. Overall, Hurricane Sandy affected at least 24 states and even went into Canada.

“I feel really lucky that we were in a location as safe as ours,” Lee said.

The entire team feels fortunate, and we also would like to spread awareness and take a minute to think about those that were affected detrimentally in the midst of Hurricane Sandy.

“So many other people suffered much more than we did in the hurricane, and everyone needs to try to help them out in this difficult time,” Lacey Gunther, senior, said.

There are many ways to help out and mitigate the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy. The Red Cross, at www.redcross.org/hurricanesandy, and Ten Doves Charity, at www.disasterfunding.org, are both accepting donations to support Hurricane Sandy relief, and any amount of money will help.

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About the Contributor

Mary Earp, Co Editor-in-chief

Perfectionist, outgoing and busy are just three of the many words that describe Mary Earp, senior. Earp heard about Amplifier from her eighth grade English teacher, and has been a part of the staff since her freshman year. Currently, she is one of the three Co-Editors-in-chiefs of the paper. Most people have goals that they would like to pursue in their life, and this is a true statement for Earp as well. “I want to be a doctor, and I know this sounds cheesy, but I would really like to make a difference in the world,” Earp said. After high school, her hopes include attending either Pomona College or University of California, Berkeley. Outside of school, Earp has a very hectic life which includes playing co-ed soccer, being a member of the school Mock Trial team and being the President of National Honor Society. She is traveling to New York in late October for an international Mock Trial Competition, Empire, where she is assigned to present the closing argument and both direct and cross examinations for the trial. Some highlights of Earp’s summer were hanging out with friends and taking a vacation to North Carolina, where she visited family and spent some time at the warm sunny beach. If Earp could visit any place two places in the world, she would choose “Italy and Machu Picchu, Peru, because the scenery is beautiful,” Earp said. Her favorite year in high school so far was junior year. “It challenged me the most and broadened my horizons,” Earp said. So far in her senior year, the class Earp most enjoys is AP Environmental Science, “It’s very interesting, enlightening, and I have a great teacher,” Earp said. Earp’s senior year is packed with AP Environmental Science, AP Calculus BC and AP English, leaving her with a long night of work to complete. The most challenging part of taking these classes “is all of the work involved,” Earp said. So far, her last year in high school has been hectic and full of work, yet she is excited and looking forward to all of the opportunities that lie ahead in her future.