IU’s ice storm response pales in comparison

Sophomore Kristin Lenz said she heard a rumor at about 12:15 p.m. last Tuesday that classes were canceled.

“I waited and waited, obsessively checking my e-mail and IU’s Emergency Preparedness website to notify me of any cancellations since I had a psychology exam at 2:30,” Lenz said.

Lenz checked one more time at 2 p.m. before making her way to the bus stop. She said she fell on the ice just before she reached an A bus at the stadium.

When she arrived at her psychology class, she saw a sign saying classes beginning at 2:30 p.m. were canceled.

“Obviously that rumor turned out to be accurate, so why did it take until after 3 p.m. for the students to be notified that our 2:30 p.m. classes were canceled?” Lenz said.

IU spokesman Larry MacIntyre said he couldn’t pinpoint the exact time IU-Notify messages went out.

At 7:45 a.m. Tuesday, IU Student Association Chief of Staff Neil Kelty tweeted to ask IU students to submit their weather-related issues to the IUB Safety Concerns e-mail account.

At noon Tuesday, IUSA President Michael Coleman tweeted, “Monroe County is shut down — all classes should be canceled from here on out.”

Coleman said the delay in notifying students was “unfortunate, but probably necessary.”

IU student Ben Thon said one of his main concerns about IU’s response to the ice storm was safety.

“I saw a huge ice-covered tree limb fall on the way to my 9:30 class,” Thon said. “If that would have landed on somebody it would have killed them.”

MacIntyre said he stood by IU-Notify’s response time.

“IU-Notify is still pretty quick,” MacIntyre said. “I think the decision was made some time after noon, and it takes maybe 30 minutes for IU-Notify messages to totally spool out.”

MacIntyre admitted some IU-Notify responses take longer than others.
IU-Notify did not reach some students’ phones until about 3 p.m. Tuesday, several students said.

Students received an e-mail from Dean of Students Pete Goldsmith at 4:28 p.m. Tuesday notifying them that 2:30 p.m. classes were canceled.

“The text messages go very quickly,” MacIntyre said. “The e-mail messages take longer. The phone calls take even longer. That’s just the nature of the system.”
Lenz said she thought IU’s response time was ridiculous.

“After hearing that IUPUI, Butler, ISU, Purdue and U of I were given notice they were canceled for Tuesday on Monday night or very early Tuesday morning, I just can’t understand why IU went about canceling the way they did,” Lenz said.

RESPONSE TIMES BY UNIVERSITY

Purdue University
DECISION MADE 5:30 a.m. Tuesday
CLASSES CANCELED Tuesday and Wednesday
STUDENTS NOTIFIED Between 5:30 and 6 a.m. Tuesday
NOTIFICATION METHOD Text message, e-mail.
DECIDING FACTORS Wind chill, students’ walking distance, road conditions, parking availability after snowfall.

Indiana State University
DECISION MADE 10 p.m. Monday
CLASSES CANCELED Tuesday and Wednesday
STUDENTS NOTIFIED Soon after 10 p.m. Monday
NOTIFICATION METHOD Text message via Rave alerts, e-mail, local media outlets
DECIDING FACTORS Two-thirds of student body living off campus, road conditions

IU-Purdue University Indianapolis
DECISION MADE 6 p.m.  Monday
CLASSES CANCELED All day Tuesday and Wednesday; Thursday until 5 p.m.
STUDENTS NOTIFIED 6 p.m. Monday
NOTIFICATION METHOD Phone call, e-mail and website notifications via IU-Notify
DECIDING FACTORS Weather conditions, road conditions

IU-Bloomington
DECISION MADE noon Tuesday
CLASSES CANCELED Tuesday after 2:30 p.m. until Wednesday before 10 a.m.
STUDENTS NOTIFIED Text messages after 3 p.m. Tuesday; via e-mail at 4:28 p.m. Tuesday
NOTIFICATION METHOD Text message, phone call, e-mail and IU website notifications via IU-Notify
DECIDING FACTORS Weather conditions, sidewalk conditions, road conditions

MONROE COUNTY AND CITY OF BLOOMINGTON
DECISION MADE 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, 6:45 a.m. Wednesday
CITY AND COUNTY CLOSINGS All offices and non-emergency services closed after 12 p.m. Tuesday and all day Wednesday
STAFF NOTIFIED Shortly after 10:30 a.m. Tuesday and 6:45 a.m. Wednesday
NOTIFICATION METHOD Phone call, e-mail and local media notification
DECIDING FACTORS Road conditions, duration of ice storm, National Weather Service reports, public and staff safety.

Purdue University
had two full days off Tuesday and Wednesday.
Officials made the decision to cancel classes at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, said Jeanne Norberg, director of University News Service for Purdue.
Text messages reached students’ phones between 5:30 and 6 a.m.
Norberg said Purdue sent an e-mail to all students and staff Monday night reminding them to check Purdue’s website for cancellations.
When Purdue made the decision to cancel, “almost simultaneously, police send out a text message to 42,000 people who have signed up for the service,” Norberg said.
Norberg said Purdue looked at the weather forecast to see how severe the weather would be during class times.
“There are a lot of factors, and safety is the biggest,” Norberg said.
The decision-making team looked at wind chill, how far most students had to walk, road conditions and how many parking spaces would be available after snowfall.

Indiana State University
also had Tuesday and Wednesday classes canceled.
Diann McKee, vice president for business affairs, finance and university treasurer, said the University notified students of the Tuesday cancellation at about 10 p.m. Monday.
Text messages reached students very quickly after the decision was made.
“I know I had it on my cell phone just minutes after the decision,” McKee said.
ISU used its Rave alerts, a system similar to IU-Notify, to send out text messages. The University also sent out e-mail messages and notified local media.
Officials decided to cancel classes in part because two-thirds of ISU’s students live off-campus, McKee said.
“We look at road conditions for those who commute as well as staff,” McKee said. ISU also monitored local emergency notifications.

IU-Purdue University Indianapolis
canceled classes Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday until 5 p.m.
University officials first notified students and staff at 6 p.m. Monday, said Rich Schneider, IUPUI Director of Media Relations.
IUPUI officials used IU-Notify to send e-mails and phone calls. They also notified local media and posted website notifications.


Monroe County and the City of Bloomington
were both closed Tuesday after 12 p.m. and all day Wednesday.
County and city officials notified staff shortly after 10:30 a.m. Tuesday and at 6:45 a.m. Wednesday.
“I initially phoned commissioners and the presiding judge. They in turn relayed the decision widely to their staffs,” Monroe County Commissioner Patrick Stoffers said.
County and city officials also sent e-mails to employees and notified the media.
Stoffers said the county looked at “safety of the public and county staff, travel conditions and magnitude and duration of the weather event.”
The county and city also looked at reports by the National Weather Service and consulted county emergency officials.