Devastation hit Temple Ambler’s campus not too long ago, when the remnants of Hurricane Ida stormed through Pennsylvania. A tornado ripped through the area on September 1st, leaving debris and trees down in the area, along with causing severe damage to Ambler’s campus.
Many have been impacted in the storm’s wake, and many more can see the damages left behind when simply looking out their windows.
Junior horticulture major Angelina Wagner says it was upsetting looking at pictures of the mess, which was just 20 minutes away from her family’s home. What was most upsetting however, she says, were the treasures that were lost.
“The plants are okay, but what really got messed up is the trees. We’ve lost 100-year-old trees, 80-year-old trees, and we study those trees,” noted Wagner.
“Anyone taking a woody plants class depends on those trees for their material. So to lose more than half the collection we had on campus is pretty bad.”
Wagner and other students say the storm hit buildings on campus, hard.
All but two of Ambler’s 18 buildings were severely damaged by water, trees, or wind, according to Director of Ambler Campus, Vicki McGarvey. McGarvey also noted that this damage may cost the school tens of millions of dollars to recover.
Due to all this damage, the campus has been closed since September 1st, leaving Wagner and other students to abruptly switch to online classes.
“It was kind of honestly an easy transition, obviously it’s a transition we didn’t expect or want, I mean I thought if we were going to go online again it would be because of COVID and not a tornado,” commented Wagner.
Ambler officials say the campus will reopen on September 15th, leaving only two buildings open for in-person learning, the Ambler learning center, and Dixon Hall.
Despite the damage however, Temple Ambler says it is “ready to rebuild,” and “come back stronger.”
Students will be back on campus soon enough, officials assure their students. Until then, Temple Ambler will host virtual town hall meetings for the community to stay updated on the reconstruction.
To see the impact of Hurricane Ida at Temple Ambler, watch Temple Update’s Nicolle Majette for more information.
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