3:30 p.m. - Classes at UF will not be canceled due to Hurricane Michael.
Administration has been monitoring the storm and decided to keep classes going as scheduled, it said this afternoon. The university will make another announcement at 9 p.m. today and again 9 a.m. Wednesday, said UF spokesperson Steve Orlando.
”The plan is to remain open from here going forward,” Orlando said.
There has been no issued hurricane watch in the Gainesville area so the impacts of the storm most likely will be minimal, Orlando said.
As of 10 a.m. today, Hurricane Michael was moving at 12 miles per hour with maximum sustained winds of 110 miles per hour, according to a report from the National Hurricane Center.
Florida State University closed Tuesday until Thursday.
Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe issued a Declaration of Emergency in the city due to the expectation of damaging winds, power outages and road network disruption, according to a Facebook post.
Alachua County Public Schools tweeted it will remain open Wednesday.
11:30 a.m.- UF administration has not decided if campus will close in response to Hurricane Michael.
The next update will by made by 3 p.m., UF spokesperson Margot Winick said.
"It's a fluid situation, and it's a big storm," she said.
The campus will continue to operate according to its regular schedule, Winick said. Alachua County is not under a hurricane watch or warning, and UF administration is still monitoring the hurricane.
The storm is a Category 2 hurricane as of 11 a.m., according to the National Hurricane Center.
The hurricane is projected to hit Florida's coastal waters Thursday morning, and it may be a Category 3 hurricane by the time it hits landfall, meteorologists predict.
The administration will make official updates on its website, Winick said. Santa Fe College has not decided to close campus as of Monday afternoon.
Alachua County Public Schools do not plan on closing this week as Alachua county does not plan on opening any shelters.
"Right now, we don't anticipate that happening unless there is a dramatic shift in the hurricane's path," said spokesperson Jackie Johnson in an email.
Mayor Lauren Poe announced the city of Gainesville is under a state of emergency Tuesday morning on Facebook.
“While Gainesville is not in the direct path, we do expect to experience damaging winds, power outages and disruption to our road networks,” Poe wrote.
Closed UF/IFAS Locations
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North Florida Research and Education Center in Quincy (Gadsden County, today to Friday)
North Florida Research and Education Center in Marianna (Jackson County, noon today to Thursday) -
Nature Coast Biological Station in Cedar Key (Levy County, today and Wednesday)
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West Florida Research and Education Center in Jay (today and Wednesday)
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West Florida Research and Education Center in Milton (today and Wednesday)
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North Florida Research and Education Center-Suwannee Valley in Live Oak (Wednesday).
Contact Alyssa Ramos at aramos@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @LysKRamos
Contact Dana Cassidy at dcassidy@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @danacassidy_
The hurricane's projected path as of 10 a.m. on Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
