The extreme cold weather and severe wind chill that are affecting central New York are hazards to the safety of the Syracuse University community. The university should assess its current policy for class cancellation and take into account subzero temperatures.

The National Weather Service put a wind chill warning into effect for south central New York on Sunday evening that remained in effect until 10 a.m. on Monday. The public alert claimed temperatures would range from 5 below to 20 below zero and wind chills would range between 25 below to 40 degrees below zero. The alert also suggests that the wind chill would be cold enough to cause frostbite in 15 minutes or less.

Many students have to walk from nearby off campus housing or their dorms to get to class. These walks can take longer than the 15 minutes it would take for frostbite to set in. In addition, students who have to wait for the South Campus buses could also have to stand in the cold for a dangerous amount of time. The university has a responsibility to keep its students and employees safe and should consider these extreme temperatures when deciding whether to host classes.

Wind chill warnings go into effect when the wind chill temperature dips below negative 25 degrees for at least three hours, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. SU should follow this guideline to decide whether classes should be delayed or canceled.

SU’s policy for delaying or canceling classes is that there must be 12 inches of snow accumulation with snow falling from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. and a forecasted accumulation of more than 18 inches. This policy is according to a March 2011 Daily Orange article from the last time SU canceled a full day of classes for inclement weather.

The other stipulation in the policy states that classes could be canceled if 36 or more inches of snow accumulated in a 24-hour period. There was no information on SU’s sites that reports a more current policy is in place.

The university should make its cancellation policy public. It should also introduce an amendment to the policy that would account for extreme cold.

The university should have a clear-cut policy in regards to dangerously cold temperatures, for the safety of SU students, faculty and staff.

Published on February 16, 2015 at 12:24 am