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Colleges in west and central Florida canceled classes for part of the week as they prepared for Hurricane Milton, a Category 4 storm that’s expected to slam into Tampa on Wednesday night and move across central Florida.
Milton would be the second storm to hit the state in the last two weeks. The last hurricane, Helene, killed more than 220 people across six states. Milton could be similarly catastrophic, officials say, and poses an unprecedented threat to the Tampa region. The mayor of Tampa warned residents to evacuate or “you are going to die.”
The University of South Florida, which has campuses in St. Petersburg, Tampa and Sarasota, canceled classes through at least Thursday and closed the residence halls at all three campuses. Students who live on campus and needed a safe place to stay were moved to a shelter six miles away. As of Tuesday afternoon, USF was planning to hold classes asynchronously on Friday.
Hillsborough Community College will also be closed through Friday, along with the University of Central Florida. UCF officials added that assignments will be suspended until Monday. The campus residence halls remain open for students who don’t have anywhere else to go.
“We are making this decision in the interest of our community’s safety and well-being and will continue to closely monitor the latest forecasts and provide updates as necessary,” UCF officials wrote in an alert. “We encourage you to use this time to take storm preparations seriously before the onset of severe weather.”
Florida A&M University also canceled classes Tuesday and Wednesday at its satellite campuses in Jacksonville, Brooksville, Tampa, Orlando and Miami. The University of Florida closed its campus Wednesday and Thursday.
