For two nights, UF sophomore Peter Nguyen slept in his bed in a small, four-bedroom apartment while seven other people slept on any available surface.
His place now consisted of him, his three roommates and three unplanned guests. Nguyen maneuvered quietly around the couches and beds people slept on in the mornings so as not to disturb his parents. He did not fear for their lives during the storm, as hurricanes had come and gone over the years. It was the aftermath he dreaded.
“It was a little hectic, but it was great,” Nguyen said. “It felt like a large get-together.”
His parents, younger sister and friend from Florida State University drove five hours from Fort Walton Beach, Florida, to Gainesville to seek shelter from Hurricane Michael.
Nguyen felt comforted to know his guests would be safe during the Category 4 storm in his college apartment — a safety precaution not all Floridians were lucky to have.
At least six people have died in Panama City and four have died in Gadsden County west of Tallahassee, according to The New York Times.
Four hospitals and 11 nursing facilities were closed in Florida due to the hurricane, according to The Times. Homes were nearly torn to the ground, roads were left in ruins and hundreds of thousands of people had no access to electricity in Panama City, Florida.
“Hearing about it after the matter, it’s hard to look at all the photos since it hit in the beach,” Nguyen said. “It’s very sobering to see that.”
Outside of Alachua County, the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences facilities in Cedar Key and the Panhandle experienced flooding and power outages, said UF spokesperson Steve Orlando. As a whole, UF facilities did not experience major damages.
The effects of Hurricane Michael in the Tallahassee area are devastating, said Chip Skinner, the Gainesville city spokesperson.
To help, seven fully equipped Gainesville Fire Rescue firefighters will be performing search and rescues in Tallahassee over the next week where the hurricane hit the hardest, Skinner said.
Equipment will be funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and federal funds, Skinner said. All-terrain vehicles, water rescue equipment, medical supplies and communication equipment will be used.
The Gainesville Regional Airport will accept first-aid supplies beginning today. Medical and baby supply donations will travel by plane to the affected areas in the Panhandle.
Flights loaded with supplies will leave the Gainesville airport Saturday, said Carolyn Rhinebarger, the Operation Airdrop media director and volunteer. Pilots, Transportation Security Administration professionals and veterans with independently-owned small planes are flying in from across the country to help deliver supplies.
People can bring non-perishable, ready-to-eat foods, such as protein bars, granola bars, peanut butter and dry pet foods. Diapers, hygiene supplies, diabetic and medical supplies are also needed, Rhinebarger said.
“People are at the point now where they’re just trying to survive,” Rhinebarger said.
Volunteers are needed to help load planes in three-hour-long shifts. Tasks such as putting together personal hygiene kits in gallon-sized ziploc bags will help those in need, Rhinebarger said.
Operation Airdrop is still collecting the number of planes that will be participating. Rhinebarger said after Hurricane Florence hit North Carolina in August, 200 to 300 pilots gathered at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport to deliver supplies for Operation Airdrop.
“The reason why people are so enthusiastic about this is that they can see their donation go right out on an airplane and be delivered into the hands of someone in need,” Rhinebarger said. “This is a way for you to have direct impact on victims.”
Having the hurricane hit the city was not a concern for Gainesville Walmart sales associate Della Ross.
Ross said her niece came from Tallahassee Tuesday to stay with her parents in Gainesville. The 59-year-old and her niece made light of the situation to brighten the mood.
“We laughed about it because I had a friend named Michael and he died two years ago,” Ross said. “I told her ‘well you know my friend was a ‘bad ass’ Michael, so with Michael the storm coming — you can imagine what it’s going to be like.’”
After evaluating Hurricane Michael’s forecast, all elementary, middle and high schools remained open this week, said Jackie Johnson, the Alachua County Public Schools spokesperson.
At least nine state colleges and universities closed for Hurricane Michael, including Florida A&M University, Florida State University and the University of West Florida.
Mackintosh Joachim, a 19-year-old UF finance and women’s studies sophomore, said many students hoped classes would be canceled to avoid taking midterms rather than for safety reasons.
The arrival of Michael reminded Joachim about the time when Hurricane Irma closed the university for four days last Fall, hourly paid workers were not paid.
“You should be studying for your midterms rather than posting about how much you want classes to be canceled,” Joachim said. “You also have to think about other people who are not so privileged.”
Amanda Wolfrom did not initially fear the hurricane last weekend. It was not until Monday evening when the UF political science senior realized her hometown of Niceville, Florida was in potential danger.
“I wasn’t too worried about it,” Wolfram said. “Then I started reading more and realized how intense and how strong it was.”
Both of the 20-year-old’s parents and her younger brother reside in the town located around 50 miles away from Panama City, Wolfrom said. Since her dad works as an electrician in first responder scenarios, she began to worry for him, as she understands the impact hurricanes can have on his work.
For now, law enforcement and emergency management are taking the lead in cleaning up and assessing the damages, Wolfrom said.
“At the moment I feel like the general public is at a standstill,” Wolfrom said. “Right now the government and first responders are doing what they need to do.”
The local schools in Niceville will open up again on Friday and rescue and recovery efforts are being organized, she said.
Luckily, Niceville did not experience anything too concerning besides flooding, Wolfrom said. Despite this, Wolfrom is concerned for those residing nearby her town in Panama City.
”It’s hard to be happy about how fortunate my hometown is because there’s so much destruction so close to where I am,” Wolfrom said. “Right now it’s hard to take in that this is literally only an hour from where I live.”
Contact Dana Cassidy at dcassidy@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @danacassidy_
Contact Angela DiMichele at adimichele@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @angdimi
Workers try to clear fallen trees off a road in Niceville, Florida.
