Almost flooded BYU-Hawaii Campus: Heavy Rain in Laie on January 28

       Heavy rain covered Laie on the last Monday of January. Water flooded the Polynesian Cultural Center and BYU-Hawaii campus including GCB and Hale 5 on January 28, 2013.

        Alexa Maxwell is an elementary education senior from Utah and a RA in Hale 5. She described how Hale 5 was flooded. She said, “It started raining really bad and the rain drain was clogged, so the water was filling up until the middle of the court yard and started to get into the dorm room.”

        Maxwell said she experienced a remarkable time of team work during the flood. “A lot of the residents got their garbage can to shovel the water out of the Hale,” she recalled. “Even up the girls in up-stair came to help. The flood didn’t affect them but down stair. It is awesome to see all the residents came together. It is really good. None of the room really got flooded. It is a good news.”

        Lei Chan, a TEOFL junior from China and a Handicraft Sale in the PCC, said she experienced a hard time working in the rain. “The back gate area was flooded and I had a hard time to walk in work. The water came to my mid-calf. It was so dirty and filled with sand, grease, and mud. A 5 minutes road now takes me 20 minutes to walk.” Although Chan did not enjoy the rain, something else did. “The ducks in PCC river were so happy and swimming. It was cute,” she said.

Holding different opinion, Preston Squire, a peace-building junior from Utah, said he took advantage from the rain. He said, “The rain actually became a good excuse for me to stay indoor and do homework. And I like the rain brought humidity to Laie.”