USF closes campuses for Hurricane Milton

*The National Hurricane Center’s Sunday’s 1 p.m. advisory shows Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area Wednesday. SPECIAL TO THE ORACLE/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER*

All USF campuses will be closed through at least Wednesday due to Hurricane Milton.

Classes will be remote on Monday and canceled Tuesday and Wednesday, USF announced in a university-wide email Sunday afternoon.

An update on Thursday’s classes and the university’s reopening will be made later, according to the email.

Students will receive an online class assignment for Monday and professors were instructed to be flexible to give students time to prepare for the storm, according to the email.

Non-essential personnel will work remotely on Monday.

Only employees “critical to campus operations” will work on campus Monday through Wednesday.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene closed the university for several days.

Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall Wednesday morning in the Tampa Bay area, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm became a Category 1 hurricane around 2 p.m. Sunday.

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties will be states of emergency due to the storm, which is “projected to constitute a major disaster.”

Heavy wind, rain and scattered thunderstorms are forecasted in the area throughout the week, according to the National Weather Service.

Residence Halls

St. Pete and Sarasota-Manatee residence halls will close at noon on Monday. Students have the option of evacuating to the Tampa campus, like they did for Hurricane Helene, according to the email.

Students are encouraged to leave all campuses if they can do so safely, according to the email. Tampa residence halls will remain open, but students could be forced to evacuate to nearby shelters depending on the path of the storm.

A list of emergency shelters near the Tampa campus can be found on the Hillsborough County website.

USF Health

USF Health clinical facilities are still open Monday. A decision on closures for Tuesday and Wednesday will be announced later, according to the email.

How to prepare

*Kits should include water, a first aid kit, flashlights and non-perishable foods. ORACLE GRAPHIC/JEISLIAN QUILES-SIERRA*

USF’s hurricane guide advises having enough resources for seven days. This includes non-perishable food, water, first aid supplies, flashlights and batteries.

The guide also advises residents to unplug their refrigerators and any other power chords. They should also empty their refrigerators and wrap towels around the bases, according to the guide.

Students should close and lock their windows and doors.

Tampa is on a flood watch until Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. Heavy wind and rain is forecasted for the week.

A list of frequently asked questions is available online.

Lily Belcher, Managing Editor

Lily Belcher is the news editor for The Oracle. She's a mass communications and professional and technical communications double major. She started at The Oracle in summer 2023 as a correspondent and worked her way up to news editor. She has been freelancing for local newspapers for four years and hopes to write for a major newspaper following her graduation. Reach her at belcher20@usf.edu

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