Classes resume and offices open at 10:30 a.m. on Monday

(Monday, March 5, 2018, 8 a.m.)

The region-wide power outage has been addressed by National Grid and power has been restored to campus. Classes will resume at 10:30 a.m. with the classes scheduled to take place at that time. Administrative offices will also open at 10:30 a.m.

We have been informed by National Grid that their work may result in intermittent power outages during the course of the day.

Thousands of homes in Norton and surrounding communities remain without power.

Thank you for your patience and understanding with any small interruptions that may occur as utility crews continue their work to restore power to our neighbors throughout the region.

Students: if you have a concern or question about a specific class, please contact your faculty member.

If you observe any storm damage or incidence of leaks, please report them to Public Safety as soon as possible so that facilities staff can respond. You can do this by calling: (508) 286-3333 or use the LiveSafe App from your smart phone. Residence Life staff members are on duty and available for assistance.

(Monday, March 5, 2018, 5:30 a.m.)

The Wheaton campus has lost power. At the moment, the college has no information on the length of the outage or its cause.

The opening of offices and the start of classes has been delayed two hours, to 10:30 a.m.

An update will be made as soon as info is available.

 

(Sunday, March 4, 2018, 1:33 p.m.)

Power has been restored to the Wheaton campus and college operations will return to normal over the course of the day.

Events scheduled for the remainder of Sunday will take place as scheduled, and facilities such as the fitness center in Balfour-Hood will re-open. Emerson Dining will re-open as a study and gathering space, and food service will resume on Monday there, as well as in the Balfour-Hood and the Davis Spencer cafes. Classes will resume on Monday.

Full restoration of all campus services may take some time. For example, the power outage has damaged the network in multiple places. Staff are working now to assess and repair that damage. Similarly, minor damage, including water damage, is being addressed. Repair and restoration work is likely to continue throughout Monday.

Class of 2020 dinner will be rescheduled for another evening.

If you observe any storm damage or incidence of leaks, please report them to Public Safety as soon as possible so that facilities staff can respond. You can do this by calling: (508) 286-3333 or use the LiveSafe App from your smartphone. Res Life staff members are on duty and available for assistance.

(Sunday, March 4, 2018, 10:45 a.m.)

Wheaton College campus remains without electrical power at this time. The college and emergency management authorities have been in discussions this morning and are awaiting more information from National Grid.

The college anticipates announcing a decision about classes and activities for Monday by early this afternoon. That information will be posted here as soon as available.

For students who are on campus, Chase Dining Hall, the Haas Athletics Center and the Library are open, fully powered and functional.

(Saturday, March 3, 2018, 2:30 p.m.)

Information from National Grid suggests that the power outage could extend into the evening and potentially overnight. Wheaton is taking a variety of additional steps to ensure the safety and comfort of students.

Moving students without heat

Students in campus residences that are not served by the central heating plant have been notified that they will be asked to spend the evening in the Haas Athletic Center, which is the college’s designated evacuation site. The building is fully powered and heated as well as offering wifi Internet access. Special programming also will be provided.

All other residence halls remain open, however, any student who wishes to relocate to the Haas Center may do so.

Other campus facilities

Chase Dining Hall now has supplemental power and will remain open until 2 a.m. Phone charging should be available there soon.

The library also remains open and is fully powered, including outlets for charging electronic devices. Additional charging stations will be established in the building as well. It will be open until midnight.

Mars Arts and Humanities, the Balfour-Hood Campus Center and the Mars Center for Science and Technology will remain open with partial power. This means that wifi service continues in those spaces with either full or partial lighting. Electrical outlets in those spaces are not functioning, however.

Power restoration

National Grid anticipates restoration of core infrastructure that serves the Wheaton campus and the surrounding community sometime this evening. Additional work will be needed to repair damage to local infrastructure that delivers power to the campus and community.

Debris has been cleared from all campus roadways and walkways, and buildings staff have addressed nearly all the minor damage sustained by several buildings. Some work is ongoing. We continue to work on several minor heating issues that have been brought to our attention.

Campus Safety

Students should take care when traveling across campus or off campus. RAs and residence hall staff are available for any students who need assistance.

  • Please make sure all windows and doors are closed and secured.
  • Remember that candles, and similar products, are not permitted in the residence halls.
  • Charge up electronic devices in one of the open and operational buildings on campus.
  • Be alert to traffic when using the crosswalks on Route 123.

If you observe any storm damage or incidence of leaks, please report them to Public Safety as soon as possible so that facilities staff can respond. You can do this by calling: (508) 286-3333 or use the LiveSafe App from your smartphone. Res Life staff members are on duty and available for assistance.

(Saturday, March 3, 2018, 8:45 a.m.)

Wheaton College campus remains without electrical power at this time as outages are widespread throughout eastern Massachusetts, affecting more than 200,000 homes and businesses and including all of Norton.

The college is working with municipal authorities to get an assessment from National Grid on the estimated length of the outage to the college. We will provide an update as soon as more information is available.

The campus has had some tree damage, but buildings and facilities crews are at work on campus, clearing walkways and roadways to ensure that they are accessible.

Open Buildings

Meanwhile, a number of buildings on the Wheaton campus that are powered by generators will be open and operational with electricity and wifi/Internet access, either throughout or in part.

Buildings that are open include:

  • Chase Dining Hall (partial power)
  • Haas Athletic Center
  • Library, open at 10 a.m.
  • Mars Arts and Humanities, including Meneely
  • Mars Center for Science and Technology (the main building)
  • Balfour Hood Campus Center (partial power)

Campus Safety

Due to the continued wind gusts expected throughout the day, students should take care when traveling across campus or off campus. RAs and residence hall staff are available for any students who need assistance.

  • Please make sure all windows and doors are closed and secured.
  • Remember that candles, and similar products, are not permitted in the residence halls.
  • Charge up electronic devices in one of the open and operational buildings on campus.
  • Be alert to traffic when using the crosswalks on Route 123.
If you observe any storm damage or incidence of leaks, please report them to Public Safety as soon as possible so that facilities staff can respond. You can do this by calling: (508) 286-3333 or use the LiveSafe App from your smart phone. Res Life staff members are on duty and available for assistance.

(Saturday, March 3, 2018, 8 a.m.)

The Wheaton College campus remains without power this morning, Saturday, March 3, 2018. Campus officials are awaiting more information from National Grid regarding when power will be restored.

Information about the campus facilities that will be open and available today will be provided here within an hour. Please check for updates as we make them available.

Take care as you move about the campus. If there is an emergency, please contact Public Safety at (508) 286-3333. Thank you.

Campus has lost power due to storm

(Friday, March 2, 2018, 5:30 p.m.)

The Wheaton College campus and the surrounding community has lost power due to a powerful nor’easter, which has brought heavy winds and rain to the area.

The power outages appear to be extensive throughout the region. Given the breadth of the power loss, and the continued high winds, restoration of power is likely to take some time. Wheaton is in touch with municipal authorities and the utility company to get updated information as soon as it is available.

Chase Dining Hall will remain open until 9 p.m. All other dining facilities have closed for the evening. The library also will close at 9 p.m.

Student activities that had been planned for this evening, including the SGA election results event in Emerson and the Lyons Den events, have been cancelled.

The community pancake breakfast scheduled for Saturday morning in Emerson Dining Hall has been cancelled. It will be rescheduled for a later date.

Due to the high winds and low visibility, students should plan to stay in place in the residence halls this evening. RAs and residence hall staff are available for any students who need assistance.

If you observe any storm damage or incidence of leaks, please report them to Public Safety as soon as possible so that facilities staff can respond. You can do this by calling: (508) 286-3333 or use the LiveSafe App from your smart phone. Res Life staff members are on duty and available for assistance.

All community standards remain in place, be smart, make good choices and take care of each other.

(Friday, March 2, 2018, 10 a.m.)

Storm closing

Wheaton College will close all offices at 12:30 p.m. today, March 2, 2018, and scheduled events will be cancelled for the remainder of the day due to a late winter Northeaster that is expected to intensify later this afternoon with heavy winds and rain.

The National Weather Service has issued a severe weather alert, including a high wind warning and flood watch, for the storm, which is forecast to leave 2 to 4 inches of rain and bring wind gusts of up to 70 m.p.h. through the overnight hours. Southeastern Massachusetts is expected to be especially hard hit, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.

Campus facilities
While classes and scheduled activities will be cancelled from 12:30 p.m. onward, a number of campus facilities and services will remain in operation, including Chase and Emerson dining halls, the Madeleine Clark Wallace Library, the Haas Athletic Center, and the fitness center in Balfour-Hood Campus Center.

Events planned for Saturday, including the community pancake breakfast that begins at 9:30 a.m., are currently expected to take place as originally scheduled, unless otherwise notified.

An update will be sent to the campus community tomorrow morning to confirm activities for the weekend.

Precautions on campus
We would like to advise the Wheaton community to take precautions and be careful during the storm:

  • Please make sure all windows and doors are closed and secured.
  • Charge up electronic devices in case there is a power outage and remember that candles, and similar products, are not permitted in the residence halls.
  • Be careful when moving about campus to avoid any falling tree branches and other debris driven by wind gusts, which are predicted to gust from 40 to 60 miles per hour.
  • Be alert to traffic when utilizing the crosswalks on Route 123. The storm may impede driver visibility.

If there is an emergency, please contact Public Safety at (508) 286-3333. Thank you.