First there was Isidore; then there was Lili. Two major storms blew through Louisiana during the semester, bringing the campus and city to a halt.
Tropical Storm Isidore trudged through Louisiana on Sept. 26, prompting LSU officials to cancel classes. But while New Orleans was drenched, Baton Rouge woke up to sunshine and blue skies.
A week later, when Hurricane Lili threatened in the Gulf of Mexico to become a Category 4 storm with winds upward of 150 miles an hour, Baton Rouge and Lafayette braced themselves for the blow.
This is a portion of an article by Chief Staff Writer Kayla Gagnet that ran Oct. 7, 2002.
The Baton Rouge area “dodged a bullet” in the form of hurricane, as the once-Category 4 Lili weakened and plowed through Louisiana last week.
Packing 150 mph winds Wednesday night, Hurricane Lili unexpectedly weakened to 100 mph just before landfall west of Vermillion Bay. The Category 2 storm still brought strong winds and heavy rains onto south Louisiana.
President George Bush declared all of the state a disaster area last week as Lili battered and flooded areas west and south of Baton Rouge, leaving many without power.
As many as 100,000 residents in the Lafayette area, about 60 miles west of Baton Rouge, remained without power Sunday, according to the Lafayette Daily Advertiser.
Lili caused minimal damage to Baton Rouge after the University canceled classes last Thursday and Friday to weather the storm. LSU reopened Saturday to continue with homecoming festivities.
“We were very concerned that [Hurricane Lili] was going to be a major storm, and we were prepared for that,” said University Spokesman Gene Sands.