Elvia Gnecco, GPC Student
There are many different events that can happen in our lives that can leave a lasting impression. Some events can be more traumatic than others. In the summer of 1992, I lived through hurricane Andrew and it was a nightmare that still lingers in my mind. This is an unforgettable and traumatic event that will always be with me. I never realized how powerful and destructive a hurricane could be.
It was a beautiful summer day. The sun was shining like a ball of fire in the clear blue sky like. The blue jays were singing and flying from tree to tree. Some of the neighborhood children were playing football in the street and others were riding their bikes or cooling off in the neighborhood pool. The airways were filled with news that hurricane Andrew would make landfall in the middle of the night so most adults were pulling down their silver hurricane shutters and others were hammering plywood to their windows.
At about 2a.m. it started to rain furiously and the wind sounded like animals were howling. I could hear the plywood pounding on the windows and the patio furniture twirling in the yard. By this time my mom, my dad, our pit bull, and I were frightened so we sought shelter in the living room in between a wall and the couch. Suddenly, we could feel the washer and dryer that were on the other side of the wall bang furiously against the wall because the window in the laundry room exploded so the wind savagely blew and it seemed like a train was about to come through the wall.
Then we decided to seek shelter in the hallway bathroom and after ten minutes we heard the window in the living room shatter and we could hear glass breaking, furniture colliding together, and the wind’s fury going through our house. We just leaned against the bathroom door and prayed. Our prayers were answered because the bathroom only suffered water damage.
At about 5a.m. the wind began to calm down so we decided to come out of the bathroom to assess the damage. Our living room was shredded into miniature pieces. There was broken glass all over the house. Most of the windows were shattered and the entire house was flooded. The roof caved into the bedroom next to the hallway bathroom that we were in and we realized that we were fortunate to be alive.
Since then I get very anxious when it rains and when the wind blows too hard, I begin to get flashbacks of the hurricane. Hurricane Andrew was a traumatic nightmare that I lived through and it will always be in my mind.