New Orleans Seminary spared major damage from Ida

NEW ORLEANS (BP and local reports) – New Orleans Seminary fared better than expected when Hurricane Ida made landfall on Aug. 29, with no structural damage or flooding, said seminary president Jamie Dew. The campus did sustain extensive tree damage and shingles gone from roofs, he added.

“These buildings look fantastic,” Dew said in a video posted on social media Aug. 30 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvEvK8FY28A). He pledged the seminary’s support to displaced students, staff, and faculty.

As hundreds of crews from power companies around the country pour into New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, “It all comes down to power,” Dew said.

New Orleans’ electricity supplier experienced what the company described as “catastrophic transmission damage,” after eight towers toppled during the Category 4 storm with winds of up to 150 miles per hour. Entergy estimated that the city faces weeks without power.

The seminary will temporarily move to online classes beginning Sept. 7th, something not unfamiliar to the seminary from experiences with COVID-19 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Once power is restored to campus and the all clear is given from the city and seminary administration, all residential classes will resume on campus.

“We all need to be thinking about ways to be displaced for a week to three weeks,” Dew said. While the campus buildings fared well, Dew pointed out the seminary family will encounter many variables in a situation that remains fluid.

The campus is open to students from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. this week to collect belongings needed for the short-term displacement. The campus must close at 5 p.m. in order to be secured by nightfall, Dew said.

Dew cautioned that access roads into the city may be closed. He said in the video that campus residents should check city resources online to find the roads that are open.

Students needing help finding shelter or who need resources for the next few weeks are encouraged to contact the dean of students at dos@nobts.edu.

Dew closed the video post with expressions of love, concern, and gratitude for the seminary family. “Let us know how we can help you,” he said. “We’re grateful for you. The Lord will get us through this.”