Derecho damage

The month of June ended with a bang this year, and many of us learned a new word: derecho. The Oxford Dictionary defines it as “a line of intense, widespread, and fast-moving windstorms and sometimes thunderstorms that moves across a great distance and is characterized by damaging winds.”

Um, yep.

We weren’t the only ones affected by the June 29 storms—there were millions of people in several states without power for quite a few days and the damage was dramatic. Here on the hill, summer scholars were sent home; petrie dishes suffered; offices were closed, and trees broke. The campus and most of Granville, didn’t get full power back until six days later, and most of those days saw the thermometer top 100 degrees.

But we plan for these things, so even though the campus was shut down for a week, there were generators in action, and the fine folks in Facilities and Security were hard at work in spite of the extreme heat, keeping people safe, clearing the roads, and restoring Denison to its lovely self. In addition, senior officials in Security and Safety, Student Development, Finance and Management, and Dining Services also jumped in to help students and staff endure the conditions.

So, here’s a view of Denison you don’t usually see. We’ll call it the “windblown” look.