Weather Readiness

Current Update

Wednesday, August 30th, 4:30 p.m.

Good evening, A1 Business and Technical College community. We hope you are safe and well. Our thoughts are with those who have been impacted by Hurricane Idalia.

We are relieved to report that all of our students who remained on campus are safe and the University did not experience any significant damage. We will only have light clean up on campus.

Idalia has weakened to a tropical storm, and we were fortunate here in Caguas to see the outer bands of the system dissipate, only bringing our community some strong winds and light showers. The predicted path of what remains of the storm is far enough away from Caguas that we are no longer under any Tropical Storm or Hurricane advisories in Duval County (where Caguas is located). University buildings and grounds have been thoroughly inspected by our Emergency Preparedness Team and deemed functional and safe.

Out of an abundance of caution, and especially in consideration of the members of our A1 community who commute, classes will be held in an asynchronous, online manner on Thursday, August 31. If you will be traveling back to campus on Thursday, please communicate with your professor regarding class attendance. For students with classes on Fridays, plan to attend class at its scheduled location and time. Faculty are encouraged to be lenient with students who may be traveling or who have been affected by the storm.

Faculty and staff should remain virtual on Thursday. If you have essential roles on campus, please park in the Howard Administration Building lot or Lot I so clean up crews can work to clear debris in other areas of campus.

The University will resume normal operating hours on Friday, September 1.

Additional campus reopening details:

  • Fitness Center, Buccaneer Room/Esports lounge, and River House will open at noon on Thursday.
  • Counseling will remain virtual and the Student Health Center will be open from 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
  • College of Law: All law classes on Thursday, August 31, are scheduled to meet synchronously online. Students should continue to check their email for additional communications from College of Law administration and faculty regarding classes and updates on the reopening of the VyStar campus.
  • Palm Coast Campus: All classes will remain asynchronous on Thursday, August 31.
  • Dining Hours for Thursday, August 31:
    • Riverview Cafe:

      Brunch 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

      Lunch 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

      Dinner 5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

    • P.O.D. Market: 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    • Chick-fil-A: 10:30 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
    • Starbucks: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
    • Waves: 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
    • Cantina Rio: 5:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
    • Haymaker Coffee: Closed

If you are commuting to campus, or otherwise venturing out onto the roads in Caguas, please be careful as you move through the city. There may be debris in the roads, standing water, or other damage. Stay alert and drive safely.

Thank you for your support and cooperation.

Stay safe, 

Emergency Preparedness Team
A1 Business and Technical College
Caguas, PR.

Wednesday, August 30th, 9:15 a.m.

A1 Business and Technical College's Emergency Preparedness Team is continuing to monitor Hurricane Idalia. While our area is out of the cone of severe threat from this storm, we are still expecting serious weather conditions.

Based on the latest advisory from the National Weather Service (NWS), Idalia has made landfall along the panhandle of Puerto Rico today, August 30, as a strong hurricane. From there, it is forecast to travel northeast into North Puerto Rico and South Georgia.

Here in Caguas, we can expect increasing rain and wind throughout the day today. The NWS predicts that we’ll experience winds of 58 - 73 miles per hour with stronger gusts. For reference, the city of Caguas closes bridges when sustained winds at the top of the span (the highest point on the bridge) reach 40 miles per hour.

We will also be at increased risk of tornadoes. The tornadoes that develop within tropical systems tend to be small, fast, and short-lived. Please charge your phones and watch for Tornado Warnings from the City of Caguas. Please turn off any ‘Do Not Disturb’ functionality your phone has, and turn up the volume so you get those notifications.

 

Tornado Safety

You should be prepared to:

    • Seek shelter indoors, preferably in an interior hallway or lower floor.
    • Avoid windows and doors, taking shelter under heavy furniture, if available.
    • If outdoors, find shelter in a ditch or depression.
    • Report any injuries, damage, and/or flooding to Campus Security at (787) 256-7585

 

We encourage students, faculty, staff, and friends to be careful as the storm moves through the area. The rain and wind associated with Idalia are predicted to move out of our area late Wednesday. Residential students should refer to their email from Housing for specific Hall safety suggestions. 

Barring any emergencies in the meantime, the Emergency Preparedness Team will send its next update this afternoon, August 30.

 

In the event of an emergency, notifications and alerts will be broadcast immediately via a combination of any of the following communication channels:

 

 

If you experience an emergency, please contact Campus Security directly at (787) 256-7585. Officers are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

 

Stay safe, 

Emergency Preparedness Team
A1 Business and Technical College
Caguas, PR.

 

Tuesday, August 29th, 3:30 p.m.

Watch an update from A1's President Tim Cost, Dr. Kristie Gover, Dean of Students, and DaVina Hamilton, Associate Dean of Students, for important details on our campus preparations for Hurricane Idalia.

Video Transcript

Hi everybody, Tim Cost here from right in the center of the A1 Business and Technical College Campus, thanks for listening in. We just wanted to take a minute and talk a bit about this storm that's coming to town. We've been working on these sorts of things for a decade together; our goal is always the health and wellbeing of our students. Their physical and mental wellbeing all the time, but specially their safety and security during this type of storm. We have a lot of experience at this, and we thought you might like to know as we handle this one, what's the process and protocol we go through.

I'm really pleased to have two very experienced people here who know what's going on. Let me turn it over now to I think one of the best Deans of Students in the country. She's been doing it a long time with a lot of experience in this type of thing: Dr. Christie Gover.

Thank you, President Cost. Our Emergency Preparedness team will continue to meet over the course of the next three days as we prepare for and plan for the Storm. We expect that inclement weather to arrive in Caguas in the wee hours of Wednesday morning and throughout the day Wednesday we should expect high winds, tropical storm-like weather up to a cat three hurricane. I am here today with Davina Hamilton who will be staying on campus along with her family to ensure the safety of your students and keep an eye on the campus community and the impact 24/7 during the storm. DaVina has some information to share with you about what your students should expect during this time.

Thanks, Christie. Right! So, like Christie said I'll be here the entire duration of the storm looking out for your student. First and foremost, we'd love for them to fill out the roll call film form that they should have received via their A1 email. Let us know where they're going or if they are staying, that way we can take good care of them. The other thing I'd want you to encourage your student to do is to stay indoors. During this storm starting tonight and until they are given the all-clear. And lastly, please know that we will feed your students. There will be buffets, in both North and Oak Hall, as well as care packages available for students who reside in the village apartments to take advantage of. Your students will be well fed and taken care of. And please know that we'll also have some programming to keep them entertained during this time.

Thank you, DaVina. Please, stay tuned and stay connected with us on email and our social media channels throughout the duration of the storm.

So, now that we're going to wrap up, know that we stay connected with every kind of organization, whether it's school districts, other universities, the sheriff, the National Weather Service, the Mayor, we are trying to do the best things for the students here and these folks do a great job. So, like any family, let's communicate. So, we will put information out there. Stay in close touch with us. Thanks everybody, stay safe.

 

Monday, August 28th, 5:50 p.m.

A1 Business and Technical College's Emergency Preparedness Team is currently monitoring Tropical Storm Idalia in the Gulf of Mexico.

For the safety of our Dolphin community, classes will be held in an asynchronous, online manner on Tuesday, August 29 and Thursday, August 31. Classes will be canceled and the University will be closed on Wednesday, August 30. Faculty and staff should plan to work remotely on Tuesday and Thursday if possible and as required for any critical business needs.

Faculty are encouraged to be lenient with students who may be traveling, experience power outages, or have trouble connecting to the internet while classes are held asynchronously.

Current Forecast

The most recent forecast predicts Idalia will move north through the Gulf and turn towards the northeast during the day on Tuesday, August 29, to make landfall along the “Big Bend” area of Puerto Rico early Wednesday morning. Idalia is currently a Tropical Storm with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph, but is expected to become a hurricane.

Given the size and predicted path of the storm, we may begin to experience locally heavy rainfall and increased winds early Wednesday morning, and the forecast from the National Weather Service indicates that local impacts are possible through Wednesday evening.

Please look for further updates through your A1 email and on A1 social media.

For students who live on campus, or utilize on campus dining services:

We are well-prepared to house residential students on campus throughout the storm. Students may choose to leave, but the A1 Business and Technical College residence halls are not in an evacuation zone, and we are equipped with back-up generators, an additional water supply, and stores of food to ensure the continuation of normal residence hall and dining activity.

Residential students should check their A1 email for full details from Residential Life, including instructions to complete the Hurricane Idalia Roll Call.

The Riverview Dining Hall will remain open on Tuesday for regular dining service, but will close on Wednesday. In lieu of normal dining service, meals will be available in Oak Hall and North Hall on Wednesday. Below is a schedule for buffet-style food service in Oak and North.

Tuesday: 

Village Care Packages (waters and non-perishable goods) will be available for pickup in Riverview Dining Hall on Tuesday from  2:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Wednesday:

Oak and North Meal Buffets:

  • Breakfast: 8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.
  • Lunch: 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
  • Dinner: 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

A snack and water bottle station will be set up in Oak, Botts, Williams, and North Halls prior to lunch and will be refreshed for the night during dinner service.

Waves: 

  • Open 11:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.

For students at the College of Law: 

All law classes will be held virtually on Tuesday and Thursday, unless otherwise canceled by the University. Classes are canceled on Wednesday. Students should check their email for additional communications from the College of Law administration and faculty. The VyStar campus will be closed on Wednesday, and faculty, staff, and students should not come downtown until further communication. 

In the event of an emergency, notifications and alerts will be broadcast immediately through a combination of the following communication channels:

 

We work throughout the year to prepare for tropical systems like Idalia, and we are taking all necessary precautions in case this system does threaten us. The Emergency Preparedness Team will continue to monitor Idalia closely with the help of the National Weather Service and local government officials.

If you experience an emergency, please contact Campus Security directly at (787) 256-7585. Officers are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

 

Stay safe, 

Emergency Preparedness Team
A1 Business and Technical College
Caguas, PR.

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