Mattresses, pool floats and cookie sheets were a last resort for University of South Carolina students who wanted to sled on a recent snow day.

“I’ve seen kayaks,” said sophomore biology student Meridian Mangione. “I’ve seen, you know, of course, the classic cardboard, trash can lids – laundry baskets are a big one.”

Some folks even sat inside a cooler, headed down the Barnwell Street hill near Blossom Street. The descents started with the cock’s crow and continued past midnight.

“Super-steep hill, super icy,” she said as the clock ticked toward 1 a.m. “People are going down in literally anything they can find at their apartment, because, of course, nobody’s prepared for the snow.” 

Winter festivities were in full swing after Jan. 31’s bomb cyclone of snow. Students fell into snow angels – and huge snowball fights, heading en mass for the wide open spaces of the historic Horseshoe and the Pickens Street pedestrian bridge.

Sophomore tourism management student Casey Leonard has ample experience in winter weather, hailing from Northville, Michigan. Still, she joined in the frosty fun, tracing “I love USC” in the powdery snow covering the Horseshoe’s bricks. 

“It was so cool to see people having fun in the snow,” Leonard said. “And as someone from the North, it’s always cool to see how magical people who haven’t seen it before think it is.”

One such person was senior psychology student Elizabeth Milam, who grew up near sultry, snow-free Orlando, Florida. 

“It’s so exciting,” Milam said. “It’s like a joy that everyone else in the United States gets to have. But I just never see it.”

Milam’s hands shivered from holding an enormous, frozen snowball, but her outlook remained sunny. 

“If you’re staying inside, you’re being boring, because it’s gorgeous and there’s so many people outside,” she said. “So why stay inside when you could be out here?” 

Gov. Henry McMaster halted campus operations at USC that Monday after Saturday brought 3 to 5 inches of the white stuff that buried the streets.

Dozens and dozens of students kept constant snowball battles going on the Horseshoe throughout Saturday. 

The school’s Center for Health and Wellbeing treated only a few minor injuries attributed to the winter storm, said USC communications director Collyn Taylor. 

Maintenance faculty worked all weekend to ensure campus safety, Zone Maintenance Supervisor Rex Townsend said. 

Staffers spread salt granules and shoveled snow on priority walkways leading up to dorm buildings, and sprayed liquid ice melt on canopies to prevent potentially hazardous icicles from forming.

“Nobody knows the campus like us, so we know where to go to definitely address the issue before it gets out of hand,” Townsend said.

He had fun, despite the extra workload.

“If I didn’t want my whole backside wet, I’d be doing a snow angel right now,” Townsend said. “But, you know, I’m having a good time. We like to make sure everybody’s safe. That’s fun for us.”

The frigid fun was not without inconvenience for residents, who had to navigate slick roads and business closures. 

“I tried to go grocery shopping and then nothing was open – but completely understandable,” said sophomore psychology student Sydney Mueller. “The weather’s crazy.” 

USC campus operations were canceled from Saturday to Monday, though essential food service, recreation centers, the Thomas Cooper Library, student health services and the Russell House student union operated under modified hours. 

“We’re not used to the snow,” Mueller said. “But being able to have a snow day with my friends from all over was just a really great experience.”