Almost 250 FAU community members gathered at the Lifelong Learning Center Auditorium to hear President Frank Brogan’s State of the University Address on Tuesday, September 14. According to Brogan, the university is apparently back on the right track after Hurricane Frances and a variety of bizarre problems that occurred afterwards.

Recovery efforts immediately after the hurricane faced many obstacles, some created by Frances but others not. The storm caused power to go out across FAU, and then when the school’s transformer was turned on as backup it blew out, once again leaving the majority of the university without power. The problems did not end there, however. Once a new transformer was installed, five critical pumps, which power two-thirds of the A/C on campus, burnt out.

The main damages to the Boca campus were downed trees and power lines, along with the electrical problems encountered. Other campuses, including Jupiter and Broward, suffered minor roof damage as well. Port St. Lucie even suffered some structural damage as a result of the high winds.

Brogan applauded the university’s quick recovery from the triple emergency. He praised the faculty, staff, and personnel support on all campuses during the recovery efforts in response to what he called the “carnage” left in Frances’ wake, especially the faculty and staff who were asked to report to work on Friday, September 10, despite the nonfunctioning A/C.

Brogan referred to students coming back to the dorms on September 12, and the entire student body settling back into school, which he called an “oasis in the storm” of confusion after Frances. No mention was made, however, of how the missed days of class would be made up. Ironically, FAU’s storm history seems to have repeated itself. The school’s opening in 1964 was delayed six days because of Hurricane Cleo. Sure enough, on the school’s 40th anniversary week, it once again had to close for six days because of Hurricane Frances. As Brogan said, “Hurricanes have been a part of the history of FAU.”