Dear Students, Faculty and Staff:
As part of the ongoing efforts to keep Carolina as safe as possible, the University has updated the Emergency Notification Plan to include notification of severe thunderstorm warnings for Chapel Hill and Carrboro.
When the National Weather Service issues a severe thunderstorm warning for Chapel Hill and Carrboro the University will alert students, faculty and staff that conditions are favorable for a strong thunderstorm to produce dangerously large hail or high winds, capable of causing significant damage.
During this time please be on the lookout for threatening weather conditions and listen for later statements and possible warnings.
The weather service updates this information regularly, so people are advised to check http://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwaatmget.php?x=NCC135 for the most current information about Orange County.
For a list of services that you can use to subscribe to weather alerts visit http://www.weather.gov/subscribe.
The University will not send additional text, email or other notifications to the campus community about a severe thunderstorm warning since the status of those often change frequently during a weather event. If a new weather pattern enters the area that prompts a fresh alert after a 24-hour period, the University plans to reissue the notice as part of ongoing monitoring efforts for potential serious weather conditions.
If the weather service issues a tornado watch for Orange County, the University will issue a separate timely warning. If the weather service issues a tornado warning for Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the University will activate the emergency sirens. A tornado warning means that a tornado has been spotted, or that radar indicates a thunderstorm circulation that can spawn a tornado, according to the National Weather Service. The University will activate the sirens for a significant emergency or immediate health or safety threat, send a text message to registered cell phones and start other notifications including campus email.
Please take the time to review these changes so that you can do your part to make campus safety a priority. You can view the updated notification poster online at https://www.piersystem.com/go/doc/1395/1184023.
Sincerely,
Jeff McCracken
Director of Public Safety