This winter storm was unlike anything the state of Texas is used to. From power outages to a water boil notice, Corpus Christi residents were affected in many ways. 

Texas A&M University of Corpus Christi cancelled 15-week classes and continued to have 7-week sessions online, with faculty reaching out to their students for deadline adjustments. 

Students have been impacted in ways that they’ll never forget. Those students who lived at Miramar housing were able to receive bottled water from the Dining Hall or at the front office. With limited resources for food in stores, Dining Services on campus remained open, with students having the option to take their food to-go and taking extra meals for the next day to avoid making several trips out in the cold. 

Ayanna Oltivero, a junior Nursing major, saw the snow fall on Sunday, not knowing how it would impact her in the end. Oltivero mentioned how she wasn’t able to do her school work with the power outage and was unable to go to work due to ice on the roads. 

“I believe the University handled it the best way that they could,” said Oltivero. “We’ve never been in this situation before.I do appreciate the University remaining patient with the students losing power, it’s definitely a stressful time. I also think that the government handled it as best as they could… I think a way that we can handle it differently for next time is to be prepared with maybe generators or propane tanks or candles, foods that you can make without electricity, and basic needs for survival in that time if things were to go wrong again.”

Natalia Rodriguez, a sophomore Nursing major, also mentioned that her power went out, her food in her fridge spoiled, she was unable to charge her devices, and lost contact with her parents.

“I think cancelling the whole week was good on the University’s part, but as for my professors, having tests RIGHT after when we just got power back was kind of difficult,” said Rodriguez. “ I feel awful that some people around Texas lost their lives due to this winter storm, it was something that Texas was not prepared for and unfortunately it cost lives for some. I hope that they can learn from those who had to lose their lives and know exactly what to do next time around.”

With the possibility of rising water and electricity bills, and with some Texans still without water, the impact of this storm has yet to be fully realized.