Preparing for Hurricane Florence

Wed, 12 Sep 2018 10:07:40 -0400

Members of the UMBC Community:

Hurricane Florence is steadily approaching the East Coast. Current models predict it will make landfall in the Carolinas late Thursday or early Friday. While the chance of tropical-storm-force winds in the Baltimore area is low, with the storm track projected to potentially move toward the south and west, storm paths can change and flooding remains a concern.

UMBC Police is receiving updates from our weather service, the Maryland Emergency Management Agency, and the Maryland State Police, and the campus Emergency Operations Center is ready to be activated if the need arises. Please sign up for UMBC Emergency Text Alerts for the latest campus updates.

Although major hurricane impacts in our area are unlikely based on current predictions, we encourage UMBC community members to have a hurricane preparedness plan in case anything changes. Florence has the potential to be the strongest storm ever recorded to make landfall this far north on the U.S. coast, so for your safety, please take it seriously. The most up-to-date information on the storm’s progress is available at NOAA’s National Hurricane Center website.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact the UMBC Police at 410-455-5555.

Paul Dillon, UMBC Chief of Police