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---
title: Italian Student Stuck on Empty College Campus Goes Viral
description: 1A 9-year old student, Luca Petrogalli, is staying at the virtually empty University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a lot of free time.
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author: Melissa Locker
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article:published_time: 2020-04-09T19:35:10.000Z
article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:01:25.950Z
og:title: Italian Student Living on an Empty Campus Goes Viral for Trying to Make the Best of His Situation
og:description: 19-year old Luca Petrogalli is at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a lot of free time
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twitter:description: 19-year old Luca Petrogalli is at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a lot of free time
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# A Student From Italy Staying in an Empty Dorm Has Gone Viral For Trying to Make the Best of His Situation

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by 

[Melissa Locker](https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/)


## Melissa Locker


Apr 9, 2020 7:35 PM UTC

by 

[Melissa Locker](https://time.com/author/melissa-locker/)


## Melissa Locker


Apr 9, 2020 7:35 PM UTC

When the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater suspended all classes and locked down its campus last month in response to the [coronavirus](https://time.com/5817899/trump-administrative-state-coronavirus/), many students went home. 

Not Luca Petrogalli. The 19-year old freshman is from the city of Turin in northern [Italy](https://time.com/5799586/italy-coronavirus-outbreak/), which is also locked down as the country fights to prevent the further spread of [coronavirus](https://time.com/5816134/covid-us-hospitals-patients/). As [_The Daily Dot_ reports](https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/luca-petrogalli-tiktok-quarantine/), going home to Italy wasn’t an option, so Petrogalli stayed on campus by himself. However, he managed to keep busy with TikTok.

On [TikTok](https://www.tiktok.com/@luca%5Fpetro?refer=embed), he has been documenting his life as a coronavirus castaway of sorts, as a lone resident of the empty campus. 

_Keep up to date with our daily coronavirus newsletter by clicking_ [_here_](https://cloud.newsletters.time.com/coronavirus?source=article)_._

He captures what it’s like living in an otherwise empty dorm, but he is trying to make the best of it.

This lonely video is just missing a tumbleweed rolling through.

Since Petrogalli appears to have the entire dorm to himself, when he decided that he was tired of walking to the bathroom every morning, he just moved inside. Who is there to complain?

He also found a creative way to not miss his friends who would normally be filling the dorm with noise and action, printing out their photos and sticking them up on the walls.

_Please send any tips, leads, and stories to_ [_virus@time.com_](mailto:virus@time.com)_._

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