The war is over — now the healing begins

The raw flesh, where a hole had been on his cheek, serves as a reminder to John Kuhl of his time as a zombie.

“I see it every time I look in a mirror,” Kuhl said. “But I’m glad to be a human again.”

The zombie plague that ravaged Utah State University has been cured. But has the school fully recovered?

Friday morning, students woke to the destruction caused by the apocalypse. Blood covered the campus. Buildings and sidewalks were destroyed.

Recovery efforts have begun to repair the damages caused by the zombie invasion.

Every zombie has been cured by an antidote that was acquired by the human forces late Thursday night. Now that the zombies have healed physically, they now face the task of recovering mentally.

“I have memories of the people I have fed on,” Kuhl said. “It haunts me a little bit knowing that I have harmed humans, especially those whom I commanded as a human. It is hard to look them in the eyes.”

Although victorious, the humans have been affected by the zombie apocalypse and now are trying to forget the horrors they witnessed.

“Sometimes I thought that it would be nice to be a zombie,” said Dustin Christensen, who was never infected. “It took an emotional toll on me. It was almost like I had suicidal thoughts to become a zombie.”

“It’s a huge relief that I don’t have to worry for my life anymore,” Christensen said. “The peace of mind is the greatest thing I have right now.”

Bystanders are also happy to know the fighting has ended.

“The zombies were always running around campus chasing people,” said Jaslyn Brinkerhoff, a student at Utah State. “I’m relieved that it’s over now.”

During the final battle, the antidote was obtained by the human militia after fighting its way through the zombie horde.

“They got the antidote into the water system and vaporized the water,” Christensen said. “It caused the antidote to become airborne and it got into everyone’s system.”

“I have a feeling that another virus will break out soon,” Kuhl said. “I’ll be watching my back. I have a little bit of paranoia that there could still be a zombie walking around.”

UnDeadline reporters Bradley Wells, Hannah Romney, Christopher Farnes, Ronald Henline, Sarah Menlove contributed to this report.

Decomposing bodies, strewn across campus, pose new health risks

The war between zombies and humans is over, but at Utah State University the cleanup has just begun.

Stench from decomposing flesh filled the air on campus Friday. Infectious decaying corpses lay strewn across campus.

Wellness officials at Utah State University are concerned about the effects the war has had on public health and mental health.

The bacteria and viruses from the rotting flesh have already been spread to the inside of campus buildings according to Andrea Sinfield, a representative of Utah State’s student health center.

"You wouldn't want that infecting the food and The Hub and all these dining areas. We'd see fingers on the chairs and the tables," Sinfield said. "It would be a terrible thing to see that. Can you imagine a teacher spreading it to hundreds of students and just contaminating the whole school? It is an epidemic."

Officials are also concerned about the public’s mental state.

“Frankly it’s effecting their studies," Sinfield said. "We have lots of sleeping disorders and anxiety about these zombies and the stress is definitely taking a toll."

Student Ryan Adair said he doesn’t feel safe outside.

“Things have been crazy," Adair said. “It’s not a very pleasant sight to see.”

Campus health officials plan to clean and sanitize campus over the next week according to Celeste Rich, an employee of the student health center.

“We’re doing all we can,” Rich said. “It’s going to be a process to get things back to normal. We urge people to be patient and use caution.”

Hand sanitizer will be distributed to students and faculty as an additional preventative measure.

UnDeadline reporters Addison M.T. Hall, Blake DeVries, Brooklin Peterson, Kyle Heywood, Ryan Gudmunson and Tavin Stucki contributed to this report