Thursday, September 10,1992
THE Hilltop
The Student Source for News
Opinions
Starting m this issue, Dwayne
Kennedy will be updating you on
the Presidential campaign. But,
leading the page is an editorial
from Julia Brittain about involve
ment.
Sports
Find out who all the new faces
around the gym are in the article
about New Coaches. Football,
Volleyball, and Soccer are all
highlighted this issue.
News
MHC enrollment is up, the
new cafeteria is causing some
headaches, and all the latest on the
world front are all right here.
Features
Culturefest and the theatre de
partment are cooking up some
great shows for this fall, while
some of the other organizations
are focused upon.
The Back Page
Check out our new cartoonist,
CHAOS, while making plans to
see one of the Timberline’s Sun
day Night Movies.
MARS HILL
Mars Hill College, Mars Hill, NC 28754
//urricane Andrew Hits
Close To Home
by Kelly McElveen
Assistant Editor
Editor’s note: On Monday, August
24, Hurricane Andrew roared ashore
South Florida around 5 a.m. with sus
tained winds at 140 mph. The storm,
the most powerful to hit Florida in 60
years, is the nation’s worst natural di
saster causing over 20 billion dollars in
damage and 34 deaths.
As Monday, August 24 dawned a
beautiful day around Mars Hill, most
students were busy unpacking and
preparing for the long tedious pro
cess of registration. They saw old
friends, chatted about summer, and
talked about the hurricane that hit
Florida that morning.
But registration wasn’t on the
minds of fethleen Lynskey, Jennifer
Forgan, and Mark Mangrum as they
raced toward their South Dade
homes, dreading to see the results of
Andrew’s merciless fury on their city.
"We had no clue that the hurri
cane was going to hit," Lynskey said.
"They [hurricanes] never nit. Peo-
ile always tell us ’This is going to
je the big one’ and after a while
people aren’t concerned."
Andrew was the Big One as the
three Mars Hillians found out
when Mangrum’s sister managed
to get through on a cellular phone
at 7 a.m Monday morning.
Mangrum’s and Forgan’s families
were all unharmed, but Lynskey
was unable to contact her family
due to the damaged phone lines.
Mangrum decided quickly to
make the trip to his hurricane rav
aged home. Lynskey and FOTgan
soon followed.
"When you don’t know if your
family is okay, you can’t concen
trate on anytUng else," Lynskey
said. "I just couldn’t sit through
classes not knowing," Forgan added.
"It was one of the hardest decisions I
ever made."
At 9 a.m the trio left Mars Hill,
despite the protests of their families,
with a carload of bottled water,
canned food, paper towels, paper
plates, and other sullies. After an
exhausting, worry-filled, 13-hour
drive to South Dade, they finally
reached their destination o^y to be
stopped by the National Guard,
which had blocked off the area and
established a curfew. After showing
their ID’s, they were allowed through
to get their first glimpse of Andrei^s
wrath.
"You couldn’t even recognize the
streets. That is how bad it is. We had
to weave between trees and power
poles that were laying in the roads,"
Lynskey said.
Mangrum arrived to find his house
damaged very badly; Forgan’s house
had severe roof damage, no doors,
and blown out windows; Lynskey
found her parents unharmed and ex
tensive external damage to her house.
"Our damage is such minor stuff
compared to others. My sister lost
her entire house, and she’s nine
months pregnant," Lynskey said.
"There is no way to explain it. You
just have to see it to understand the
complete devastation of it."
"It just makes you want to cry,"
Lynskey and Forgan said repeatedly.
"That’s all we did for the first day."
"You think the news is showing
you pictures, but it’s nothing. It’s
nothing compared to what it is really
like," Lynskey said. "It looks like a
bomb hit," Forgan added sadly. "I
think people will now look back on
things as before or after Andrew."
Fighting no electricity, contami
nated water, price gougers, 90 degree
weather, and mosquitoes, the three
some stayed four days to help thqir
[ larents try to put their homes and
ives back together. "My mother was
washing clothes in a bucket and hang-
continued on page 5
TRACKING THE STORM
About The Hurricane Relief Efforts
As Americans open their hearts and wallets to help
the victims of Hurricane Andrew, Kathleen Lynskey and
Jennifer Forgan, two Mars Hill students who live in South
Dade, warn of the pitfalls that the relief effort might
experience.
"It was amazing to see the truck convoys when we were
driving back here from Florida," Lynskey said. "But in
three weeks from now, people still need to keep giving.
This isn’t going to go away. People will need help for
months to come."
Lynskey and Forgan, who recently visited their hurri
cane ravaged city, say among the most needed items are
all kinds of baby products, bottled water* personal hy
giene products, can openers, batteries, flashlights, trash
bags, coolers, bug repellant, over the counter medica
tions, and building supplies. Both also stressed the im
portance of volunteers, which is _ a plea echoed by the
Salvation Army and medical officials.
Lynskey and Forgan would also like to see Mars Hill
College organize something for the hurricane victims.
Forgan suggested having a sorority or fraternity to adopt
a family to help during the rebuilding process.
Sherri Dyshuk, a resident of Davie, Fl., said that she
hoped the Student Union Board might be able to hold a
dance on campus with the proceeds going toward the
relief effort.
One apartment complex has already taken steps to do
their part. Kevin Watkins, Resident Manager of
Dixon/Palmer Complex C, organized a collection of
canned food and bottled water during the first week of
the disaster.
"I thought it would be good to help out people less
fortunate than ourselves," he said.
"When you go to Texaco to get a hainburger, all you
have to do b buy a g^lon of water," she said.-Just don't
forget that in t\Vo mohths froni now, people will still be
living down there and will need your help."