Scroll to the bottom for video coverage of the damage.
Brescia University sustained significant damage in the early hours of Saturday morning as a powerful hailstorm swept through Owensboro. Several campus buildings were impacted, and while academic instruction will continue as planned Monday when students return from spring break, administrators said elements of student life will be disrupted in the days ahead.
“It was hail primarily,” said Rev. Larry Hostetter, the university’s outgoing president. “If you look at some of our buildings, we’ve got a lot of siding damage, a few windows damaged. Some vehicles had their windows blown out. Our greenhouse was obliterated on top of the science building, which led to flooding in that area. The roof also had all sorts of damage.”
Dean of Students Lori Etheridge echoed the damage report, particularly around the Moore Center and other student life facilities.
“The roof sustained damage from the hail, and of course that caused some leaks,” Etheridge said. “But our classroom space is fine, and our residence halls actually fared pretty well — just a few broken windows we were able to address quickly.”
Etheridge said while campus dining, the workout facility, the student center, and administrative offices were affected, Brescia is prepared to welcome students back for classes.
“We’ll do what we need to do for our students,” she said. “There may be some disruptions to day-to-day life, and we’ll have to be flexible, but we’re fortunate it wasn’t worse.”
Athletic teams are still able to practice in the gym, though the weight room is temporarily off-limits. A disaster response team is expected to be on-site Sunday to begin further assessment and cleanup.
The university is also working closely with insurance providers to evaluate the full extent of the damage and determine next steps.
Anyone interested in offering help can visit Brescia.edu/give.
“This is a challenge,” he said. “But we’ll get through it together.”
