Blizzard delays start of spring semester

PHOTOS: Campus before and after the blizzard

Approximately 30 inches of snow fell in Baltimore this past weekend in the biggest snowstorm the city has ever seen. The University was closed Monday, Jan. 25 and Tuesday, Jan. 26.

At Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, 29.2 inches of snow were measured, and the city is still dealing with the slushy aftermath of the blizzard.

These conditions affected the ability of students and professors to arrive on campus in time for the start of the semester. Dean of Student Life Terry Martinez discussed the main considerations in deciding to close the University.

“Our primary concern, of course, is the safety of all campus constituents,” Martinez wrote in an email to The News-Letter. “A University-wide Incident Command Team considers various factors including upcoming weather, road conditions, transportation capabilities and campus conditions prior to making a decision.”

In the process of determining how many students were on campus, Martinez sent a survey to the students asking when they would return to campus. The results of the survey, however, were generally inaccurate, which Martinez discovered partially through Yik Yak posts from students saying they had lied on the survey in order to provoke an extra snow day. Additionally, the survey allowed for unlimited submissions, throwing off the results.

Martinez found other mechanisms, though, to determine how many students were on campus.

“I was told by several students early on that students were misrepresenting themselves in the survey so I did not use that information to make a decision,” Martinez wrote. “I was able to compare the residential numbers provided in the survey and compared those to information I received regarding how many individual residential students gained access into the residences halls through our card reader system and found that the survey results were indeed invalid.”

For the hopeful students completing the survey, a second snow day was granted — not because of the survey results but because of safety concerns related to the commute.

“While the city’s main roads were clear, we knew that many of the side roads were not passable, nor was public transportation fully operational,” Martinez wrote. “Many streets outside of the city did not have side roads cleaned at all and we knew this would have a significant negative impact on the commute to campuses.”

Several staff members spent the weekend at or near the University either on cots, at a local hotel or at the Mount Washington campus. The University also worked with contractors to clear the campus. Custodial staff and security officers were both on campus, and the Rec Center, the library and dining services were open with modified hours.

“It was certainly a monumental effort and I was so pleased to hear that the Student Government Association took time to orchestrate a moment of gratitude to those who were working,” Martinez wrote. “I also received thank yous from neighbors who were helped by members of Beta in clearing sidewalks. These are shining moments for Hopkins students, and I am so very proud of everyone who reached out to others.”

Beyond the technicalities of being on campus, students faced logistical difficulties returning. Sophomore Perry Rudolph was one of many students who had to deal with cancelled flights.

Rudolph, who was returning from a trip to Lima, had a flight Saturday, Jan. 24 from Atlanta to Baltimore at 10:15 a.m. That flight was cancelled and rescheduled to leave at 10:15 a.m. Sunday. On Saturday afternoon, however, the Sunday flight was cancelled, and he was rescheduled for a flight for Wednesday at 10:15 a.m. Wanting to return to campus sooner, Rudolph explored alternative options.

“After spending four hours total waiting and one and a half hours on the phone, because Wednesday just wasn’t soon enough, I ended up figuring out another way to get back to school,” Rudolph wrote in an email to The News-Letter.

Rudolph considered traveling from Atlanta back to his hometown and driving north. To get to the Jacksonville airport close to his hometown, Rudolph was routed to Richmond and then to Raleigh/Durham before arriving in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Once arriving, he spent some time catching up with his family, and then his father drove him to school.

Sophomore Daphna Varadi also changed her travel plans to avoid the oncoming snow. She was supposed to return Sunday, but changed her train ticket from Philadelphia to Friday afternoon. When she woke up Friday morning and saw that JHMI shuttles were stopping early, she switched her ticket to 11 am so that she could beat the storm.

Though the storm caused complications and delayed the start to the semester, students were appreciative of the couple extra days of break.

“Though the spring semester got off to a rocky start with classes being cancelled, ultimately I’m thankful for the extra rest I got during the two days,” sophomore Tim Shieh wrote in an email to The News-Letter. “I was able to spend quality time with friends and even sled down a couple of slopes!”