Snow, ice, and wind. Yes, they are coming whether we like it or not.
The director of public safety, Creig Doyle said that there will be many safety precautions taken during this upcoming winter.
Many measures will be taken during the winter months to keep the campus safe and roads clear for the students and faculty since “there was a lot of ice last year and the Farmer’s Almanac says that this upcoming winter should be just as bad,” Doyle said. “We immediately lock up the King of Prussia Road and Eagle Road gate to the entrances since those steep roads are prone to getting very icy.”
Doyle said public safety takes other precautionary measures by salting and plowing snowy and icy roads themselves if the on-call facilities and personnel are not available when nasty weather strikes. The college also subscribes to a private weather forecast that they feel are more reliable than local television weather forecasts as well as has personnel come in two hours early if weather is expected.
One word of advice from Doyle to the students is to sign up for text alerts which helps students have the advantage of being alerted that their classes are delayed or canceled from the convenient accessibility of their mobile device as opposed to having to search through their emails.
Joseph Johnson, a senior business major who has spent many winters on campus, said that the weather is sometimes bad enough that students must be moved out of individual on-campus houses and into other buildings in fear of trees falling. Both Johnson and Doyle said that last year, it was unfortunate for a tree to fall on a student’s car on Residential Blvd. and total it. However, Doyle said “high winds and ice can make branches fall but it is mostly uncommon for entire trees to fall.”
“We have to shovel out our cars ourselves. It’s also really difficult getting out of Residential Blvd because it’s so icy,” Johnson said. “They do salt and everything but they don’t always do the best job. Some students slip on black ice and hurt themselves for sure.”
Johnson did not have certain classes for three weeks due to delays and cancelations. When asked what he does to make the winters fun he said “I snowboard and go sledding. We find a way to make it fun. Even sometimes snow angels happen.”
One commuter in particular, Jesse Fitzpatrick, said “It’s hard commuting when it’s so cold because my car takes forever to heat up and I hate scraping the windshield. I have to leave even earlier than usual because the roads get bad.”
For those who have to commute to classes and drive to jobs, some things to take note of for the upcoming weather is to leave early and take extra time while driving to avoid accidents which are common occurrences when temperatures drop and the roads get slippery. Start vehicles ahead of departing to avoid car issues as well as melt ice and snow off of windshields to make it easier while scraping. Also, wear sensible shoes while walking to class in order to avoid slipping on ice and to avoid injuries.
@abbierosekeefe
you whinning frickin maggots……….go ask the facilities guys what they were doing at 3 in the morning during the ice storm I can guarantee it wasn’t playing hiding the pastrami in the dorm