Hats and scarves are clutched, leaves fall and twirl like a rainstorm and forgotten newspapers rustle around the ground as NIU faculty and students struggle through extreme wind gusts on their way across campus.

One of the windiest campus areas is between Cole, Zulauf and Watson halls, a triangle of buildings that whips up a high concentration of gusts. Some students avoid walking through the area.

“I tend not to stay here too much or walk through the buildings,” said Anne Heinlein, a senior communication major.

Kate Grzelak, a senior elementary education major, does the same.

“I actually avoid walking through there because it’s so windy,” Grzelak said.

NIU staff meteorologist Gilbert Sebenste said on really windy days, like last Thursday, he wouldn’t be surprised if the wind gusts reached 50 mph between those particular buildings.

“When wind gets channeled through narrow buildings, the wind increases and the laws of physics say the wind must go faster,” Sebenste said.

The average wind speed in DeKalb during the year is around 10 mph, but during the winter it increases to 20 mph, Sebenste added.

Sophomore meteorology major Brian Delach has noticed the above-average wind gusts around the Zulauf, Cole and Watson area.

“Zulauf catches the wind and then the wind is forced down and funneled around the other buildings there,” Delach said.

Sebenste said other windy cities are Denver, Colo. and Cheyenne, Wyo. where wind gusts can reach up to 70 mph and sometimes 100 mph twice a year causing severe damage.

Although DeKalb gets its fair share of wind gusts, Sebenste said, “DeKalb is definitely not a windy city, but on occasion the winds have hit more than 50 mph outside of a storm system.”

There’s not much advice to offer wind-blown students.

“There’s really nothing you can do about the wind but brace yourself and watch out for flying debris,” Sebenste added.