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On the weekend of Jan. 18 to Jan. 20, all 48 of the contiguous United States felt the effects of Winter Storm Harper, which hit hardest in the northern states. Upstate New York felt some of the greatest effects of the storm, with snowfall from one-to-two feet throughout the state. The weekend of the storm, however, also happened to be the weekend that most Hamilton students were set to return from winter break. The College took measures to help students return safely — opening dorms on the morning of Saturday instead of Sunday and moving the shuttle buses from New York City and Boston that Sunday to the following Monday.
However, with thousands of canceled flights and trains, and shoddy road conditions across the country, many students had great difficulty returning to campus on time. Others were unable to and missed classes last week.
The Spectator
talked with some of these students to hear about their experiences over that very problematic weekend.
Jay Carhart ’21 drove from New York City in a Chevy Cruze and faced the height of the blizzard on Saturday night. Interstate Route 87, normally an important leg of the NYC to Hamilton route, proved to be treacherous on Saturday night while the storm bombarded drivers with snow. “I fishtailed like three times driving up, and once had to regain control of my car after almost ramming into an exit barrier. I then got stuck behind a Honda Accord for an hour and a half, which I couldn’t pass because I would have driven into a snow bank while trying to go around them. When I finally arrived, I got stuck two-thirds of the way up the G-road driveway and had to sweep around my car just to get it up to the parking lot.”
Christopher Mailman ’21 had similar difficulty early Saturday, even before the worst of the blizzard arrived. As the snow began in Central New York around noon, Chris had a hard time driving through Utica. “I was driving down a side street, and when I rolled up to a stop sign, my car didn’t stop. I slammed on my brakes, but the car kept sliding into the intersection. Luckily, I didn’t run into any other cars — I was just glad my car and I were both alright!”
Though the roads were certainly bad for individual cars, those students who use public transport were far from exempt from troubles. Amtrak canceled all of its trains operating in the Eastern United States on Saturday, Jan. 19, leaving students to frantically rework their plans on Thursday night when the announcement was made. Unfortunately for those who planned to take the overnight Lake Shore Limited line from Chicago to New York, the only options to reschedule were for the nights of Friday, Jan. 18, and Monday, Jan. 20, as the Sunday night train was sold out. Taking the Friday train meant leaving the next night, and taking the Monday train meant missing classes for the better part of Tuesday, the first day of class. Andrew Projanski ’21, among others, opted to move to the Friday night train to get back in time for class. Luckily for Amtrak riders, the college was very proactive, opening dorms on Saturday to meet the changing plans of students taking all modes of transportation.
The storm perhaps most affected those who commute by air as thousands of flights were canceled in the East on Saturday, while even more were canceled across the country. As everyone who has flown knows all too well, it is notoriously difficult to work with airline companies on rescheduling flights. Some students could not return for the entire first week, while others arrived back intermittently throughout the week.
The start of the 2019 spring semester fell on a very unfortunate weekend, but between involvement from the College and the considerations made by many professors, the students affected seem to have (mostly) been able to regain their balance and start off the semester on the right boot. As a polar vortex torpedoes temperatures in the Upper Midwest to record lows this weekend (while certainly not neglecting to give Central New York its share of the action!) it is best to keep in mind how difficult such weather makes traveling — be flexible, plan ahead, and be safe in this harsh winter!
