With Granville, Ohio just a little over 250 miles away from Greencastle, Indiana, the news of a Denison University student's death strikes close to home.
The combination of alcohol and the cold were thought to be the two main factors in 21-year-old David Hallman's death on February 8, according to WBNS-10TV out of Columbus, Ohio. On DePauw's campus, where stripping down and running naked to a large rock is a socially acceptable activity, these same two factors have come into play almost every weekend this frigid winter.
Alcohol, as Public Safety has told the student body time and time again, lowers your inhibitions and clouds your judgment. Most DePauw students are smart enough to realize that in extremely risky situations it's not the best idea to indulge heavily in anything that might change your perception. However, until this tragedy at Denison took place, many may not have considered the cold to be a "risky situation."
Hallman's death, most likely caused by overexposure to the cold, should alert us all to the fact that this weather is most definitely a risk, and this year's extremes make it more necessary than ever for students to act and drink responsibly.
Like Granville, Greencastle has experienced both extreme snow and extreme cold this winter.
According to the National Weather Service, the average temperature so far for February in Terre Haute, the closest town to Greencastle listed, has been 18.9 degrees Fahrenheit, which is 11 degrees less than what is normally seen in February. The highest temperature reached has been 43 degrees, which has occurred on one occasion this February. The lowest temperature reached was -14 degrees, a temperature which has already occurred seven times so far this month.
While the January records are less shocking, with the average monthly temperature at 21.8 degrees Fahrenheit-only a 6.4 degree departure from the average normal temperature of 28.2 degrees-temperatures this cold are cause for worry.
Overexposure to this kind of cold can result in hypothermia, frostbite and even heart attacks. While death may not always occur from these symptoms, it is a definite possibility, as we have so recently and tragically been reminded.
So: students of DePauw, bundle up, set limits and stay safe.