Photo courtesy of Julia Mills Ryan
By Riley Benson
Pelican Apartments (RHO), is on track to finish repairs due to “water damage” during Hurricane Milton on Tuesday, Oct. 29.
On Oct. 21, USF St. Petersburg housing sent out the latest update to RHO residents about the status of the building. The email stated the department plans to send out another update on the status of the building on Friday, Oct. 25.
Housing initially sent out an email on Oct. 13, stating that RHO would be closed to all students for “at least two weeks,” setting the original completion date to Saturday, Oct. 26.
This week, RHO continues its repairs, with “up to 100 workers on site every day, including weekends,” according to USF St. Petersburg housing.
The building’s 352 residents are still not allowed to return to the dorm building or collect any of their personal items. Many students work on their classes remotely, while several others are attempting to make the shelter in the upstairs ballrooms University Student Center their temporary home.
“[There’s] a sense of camaraderie because of everyone being in the same situation,” said Shaniyah Kemp, a sophomore language, speech, and hearing disorders major, who is currently staying in the ballrooms.
Students officially moved into the ballrooms on Oct. 15, where the original “Grand Ballroom” is divided into three parts, for each group of students to have their own space.
Housing initially only provided students with an air mattress, but according to Kemp, it wasn’t until later in the week on Oct. 18, that they began to provide students with blankets, and sheets and pillows being handed out the following day.
Previously, students had to provide all of their bedding and any other personal supplies needed.
“The housing staff is saying that students need to ask for things to receive them, but I think it’s common sense to at least provide students with a blanket and a pillow if they’re sleeping on an air mattress,” said Kemp.
In a statement from Carrie O’Brion, USF St. Petersburg’s interim chief of staff, she said that as of Thursday, Oct. 17, the USC is currently housing 13 students, but Kemp says there’s visibly more. She arrived on Friday, Oct. 18, and said there are likely 19 people in total now.
“I’m honestly trying to just think that it could be worse because I know that if they didn’t provide this housing I would not be able to work but I feel like they could be doing more,” she said.
Throughout the day, there’s housing staff on shift in the ballrooms from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., to help the students with anything they may need. Then later, security gets on shift at 9 p.m. and safeguards the area until the housing team comes back in the morning.
There are times during the period between after the housing staff leaves and before security arrives, where she, and others in her ballroom, feel unsafe. “Anyone can walk up [to where I’m staying] because there is no security up or down stairs,” Kemp said.
Despite there being security at night, there are times when she doesn’t feel completely safe either. She explained, that luckily they could control the lights, and there was no assigned “bedtime,” but that in a nearby ballroom, another student requested the lights go off at around 7:30 p.m. so that they could go to sleep early. This, along with some other actions by said student, that they can’t control during the night.
“I heard from someone in that ballroom that [a] student was standing in front of a female student’s bed and staring at her. When she woke up, [they] said ‘the lights are off,’ and it made her and the girls around her feel very uncomfortable. It also makes me feel uncomfortable because [they] can just as easily walk into the ballroom I am in and stare at me or my friend while we’re sleeping,” she said.
Kemp also explained that when it comes to utilizing the showers at the fitness center, she’s lucky enough that she’s able to use the showers of friends on campus, but it’s a struggle for those who don’t have that opportunity.
“One student told me that there were roaches in the men’s locker room and he was told to use the women’s instead. This whole situation is getting out of hand,” she said.
While maintenance work is ongoing in RHO, until at least mid-next week, many students are having to live with the situation in the ballrooms.
