SHSU Response to Hurricane Harvey Summary: Hurricane Harvey was the first major hurricane of the

2017 hurricane season. In a four-day period (24-28 AUG), many areas received more than 40 inches of

rain as the system meandered over eastern Texas, causing catastrophic flooding. The resulting floods

inundated hundreds of thousands of homes, displaced more than 30,000 people, and prompted more

than 17,000 rescues. Our faculty, staff, and students experienced the wrath of this storm first hand. We

eventually had to suspend classes for five days and restrict operations on campus to essential personnel.

CTRL + Click on the radar image below to watch radar image of storm over (24-26 AUG).

On Tuesday 22 AUG at 1:51 p.m., we sent a weather outlook to leadership including the SHSU planning

group that covered the forecast through Sunday 27 AUG. The outlook also highlighted the events

scheduled during that time period including athletic events. At that time, we also had a home football

game scheduled on Sunday night. The weather outlook sent is in TAB A.

On Wednesday 23 AUG at 8:44 a.m., Dr. Hoyt directed an update for the Cabinet. Dr. Hoyt directed the

staff to present the University’s plan to respond to Hurricane Harvey. The planning group met

Wednesday afternoon to work on the update based on our 120-hr timeline checklist (TAB B) and the

update briefing format we developed during a previous exercise. We addressed the concerns expressed

by Dr. Hoyt in her guidance to the planning group:

Class and instruction

Possible animal evacuation to our area

Game day

Construction- facilities prep

Residence Halls

Dining Halls

Evacuation center and historic issues

Information Technology

PR-communication plan to begin late Thursday for preparation

On Thursday 24 AUG at 9:00 a.m., we presented the forecast, impact on events, assumptions about the

impact on operations, and staff actions based on our 120-hour hurricane checklist. Our

recommendations included a key decision timeline, messaging, and campus operations modifications.

The entire briefing used to update Dr. Hoyt and Cabinet is in TAB C. After the update to Dr. Hoyt and

the Cabinet, we disseminated the changes to events scheduled for Friday 25 AUG. Dr. Hoyt and the

Cabinet also discussed events scheduled for the weekend and approved of the key decision timeline.

We issued a KatSafe alert via text and social media and updated the KatSafe website to warn our

community about the impending inclement weather and essential information about safety. We also

activated our emergency operations center meeting rhythm that included attending the Walker County

state conference calls at 8:00 a.m., and our daily updates at 10:00 a.m. at the UPD conference room.

We chose the UPD conference room for our emergency operations center updates for security, power,

and ease of access given the limited trafficability on campus with flooding and construction.

On Friday 25 AUG, the storm began to impact operations on campus. We opened our animal sheltering

operations center to support Walker County. We positioned back up power generation at key animal

and science facilities. Due to the school closures in the Houston area and the closure of the Lone Star

College Montgomery campus, we closed the SHSU Charter Schools and The Woodlands Campus. On

that day we issued three KatSafe alerts for the changes to our operations. The alerts also indicated the

decision timeline for additional closures and the modifications to food service, the Recreational Sports

Centers, the Lowman Student Center, and the Library.

The alerts referred all to the KatSafe website for additional details. Over the storm period, students,

faculty, staff, parents, and the community visited the KatSafe website 57,409 times spending an average

of over three minutes each unique visit. KatSafe text enabled users increased over 1,259 increasing our

enrollment to over 16,725 users during the 23-28 SEP timeframe.

28 SEP (final Hurricane message): 16, 725 Enrolled

23 SEP (initial weather warning): 15, 466 Enrolled

On Saturday 26 AUG, we continued to assess the impact on our operations during the 10:00 a.m.

updates with Dr. Hoyt, members of the Cabinet, and planning staff in person and via conference call

using Skype for Business. That morning, we issued a KatSafe alert notifying all of a tornado warning

issued for Walker County. We also referred all to the KatSafe website for special precautions.

The storm continued to make its greatest impact and damage 26-28 AUG. Damage to campus included

the ground level of the LSC outside the ballroom, the intersection at Bowers and Bobby K. Marks BLVD,

and areas in the vicinity of White Hall.

Additional areas that took on water included the 4th floor of the library, the Visitor’s Center, the Starr

Theater, along with numerous offices around campus. The Facilities Management team initiated an

operations center and 24 hour coverage to respond to request for assistance.

We issued a number of KatSafe alerts during the heart of the storm to keep all informed of campus

closures and hours of operation for our dining halls, the Lowman Student Center, the Recreation Center,

and the library. Dr. Hoyt approved the cancellation of classes for 28-29 AUG. The Football game was

also postponed and eventually played at Baylor University on 1 SEP after several coordination meetings.

With the significant impact of Hurricane Harvey on the entire area, Dr. Hoyt decided on MON 28 AUG to

suspend classes until TUE 5 SEP, the day after Labor Day. In addition to the KatSafe alert announcing the

decision, our Public Information team recommended the President post a message on the SHSU

homepage expressing the overall feeling of caring and support for all.

From 28 AUG – 3 SEP, the University conducted numerous support operations. The support included

student, faculty, and staff volunteering to help those displaced and recovering items from flooded

homes. The University provided support for staging operations with the Texas Department of Public

Safety, the Arlington Police Department, and units from the Texas, Arkansas, and Indiana Army National

Guard. The University also sent four UPD Officers to support forces in Beaumont and Lamar University.

Leadership initiatives on campus issued instructions to students for volunteering in the community.

Support for students included health and counseling services, Starbucks opening, and student activities

such as movie nights in the LSC Theater.

In preparation to host over 500 Army National Guard Soldiers and associated military vehicles, Dr. Hoyt

directed we inform the community of what to expect. We disseminated information via social media

(54,595 people reached) and worked on safety concerns with the Army leadership. As 5 SEP

approached, we worked with the units to reduce their footprint and address specific safety concerns

with the return of students.

The emergency operations meetings continued focus on setting the conditions to resume classes. The

conditions included adjustments to the academic calendar (TAB D), an assessment of faculty and staff

availability, and capturing hours and costs associated with our emergency response. Facilities

Management continued their assessment of building damage, our PIO team continued messaging on

social media and email, and Enrollment Management and Academic Affairs worked with our IT

department to post adjustments to financial aid, refunds, and key academic calendar dates.

We resumed class on 5 SEP resuming normal operations. We published updated academic calendar,

accounted for faculty and staff readiness, and repaired facilities. By 6 SEP, the small evacuee animals

housed in the indoor arena complex had left. The Army National Guard completed their staging

operation on campus, and our four UPD Officers had completed their mission. A complete roll up of

social media analysis before, during, and after the storm is in TAB E.

The after action review (AAR) items will follow our Issue-Discussion-Recommendation-Action format.

Issue: Establishment of Operational Control with the emergency operations planning group

Discussion: Transferring operational control to the emergency operations planning group facilitated

decision making for the University President. Sustain a clear start date and time that the emergency

operations takes operational control for recommendations and staff actions.

Recommendation: Sustain the daily meeting of the emergency operations planning group.

Communicate to the University that the development of recommendations and dissemination of

command information is now with the emergency operations planning group.

Action: Emergency Management

Issue: Composition of the planning group requires the appropriate team composition

Discussion: The emergency operations group started with a smaller group and grew incrementally as

the situation dictated. We needed to have Human Resources and Environmental Health & Safety in on

the conference calls from the beginning. Although we brought them on board just in time, they should

have been in from the beginning.

Recommendation: Determine the key personnel essential to the planning group. Distinguish from the

list of essential personnel that are situation dependent.

Action: Emergency Management

Issue: Establish the conduct and sequence for the daily planning update

Discussion: During the conference calls, it was difficult to hear and know who was speaking.

Recommendation: To make the meeting as effective as possible, establish sequence for comments from

those in attendance and those in the conference call. Have those in the call identify themselves before

they comment.

Action: Emergency Management

Issue: Need a method to maintain situational awareness with Lone Star College Montgomery

Discussion: Because of our reliance on Lone Star College to keep The Woodlands Center open, we need

to be able to track the LSC Alert system and direct contacts with their emergency management

coordinators.

Recommendation: Establish direct coordination links with Lone Star Montgomery Emergency

Coordinators and subscribe to the emergency notification system.

Action: Emergency Management and Public Information Officer

Issue: Ensure messaging includes online classes

Discussion: When we cancelled classes we did not specifically state that online classes were cancelled.

Recommendation: Specifically address online classes in addition to Main Campus and The Woodlands

Center.

Action: Emergency Management and Public Information Officer

Issue: Contingency if complete power and communication loss

Discussion: We were able to maintain power, cell communication, and internet connectivity during the

storm. In the event of power and communication loss, special instructions for the planning group will be

located at the UPD dispatch. These instructions may include planning group meeting times, distribution

of Motorola radios, and guidance for essential personnel.

Recommendation: Include this information in preparation for inclement weather plan. Consolidate

Motorola radios so they can be distributed from the EOC.

Action: Emergency Management and Information Technology

Issue: Clarify volunteer coordination responsibility. Distinguishing between Faculty and Staff

supporting operations on campus and the student volunteer coordination roles.

Discussion: During the storm, students needed guidance on how to best direct their volunteer efforts.

For clarity, we need one coordinator for support staff and one coordinator for student volunteer efforts.

Recommendation: Separate the roles for the Shelter Support Coordinator with the Volunteer

Coordinator for students.

Action: Student Affairs

Issue: Develop IT equipment support packages

Discussion: We need IT equipment to support planning group in the UPD conference, to support

communications with key leaders, and for organizations conducting support operations on campus.

Recommendation: Develop equipment packages that includes MiFi devices, portable battery chargers,

printers, temporary email accounts, and satellite phones.

Action: Information Technology and Emergency Management

Issue: Tornado Warnings

Discussion: Issuing tornado warnings via KatSafe resulted in calls to UPD dispatch inquiring about

impact and when safe to move around.

Recommendation: Include specific reference to the NOAA warning for specific instructions.

Action: Emergency Management

Issue: Departments issuing guidance and information

Discussion: The dissemination of instructions outside of the planning group created some confusion.

Specifically, some messaging stated that the modifications to the academic calendar would push the end

of term events back such as finals and commencement. Other departments administered surveys to

identify needs and resources to meet those needs.

Recommendation: Issue guidance and clarification about resources and messaging.

Action: Academic Affairs