Tropical Storm Frances made landfall along the panhandle of
Florida near the Wakulla-Jefferson county line on Monday afternoon
around 2 p.m. At landfall the National Hurricane Center reported
that Frances had sustained winds of 65 mph and was moving to the
north-northwest.

The storm brought with it winds gusting to tropical storm force
and heavy amounts of rain. The strongest winds in Tallahassee
occurred on Sunday afternoon during a passing squall, when
Tallahassee Regional Airport received a gust of 52 mph. The winds
knocked down small branches and power lines, leaving thousands
without power. Monday afternoon Leon County officials reported that
power was out to 6 percent of the residents. Wakulla County, to the
south of Tallahassee, was hit much harder. Officials report that 76
percent of the county’s residents had no power Monday
afternoon. State routes 30 and 363 were also closed in the county
due to flooding associated with the storm.

Tallahassee Regional Airport was reporting as “open”
to the Federal Aviation Administration, though all flights in and
out of the airport were cancelled for Monday and the terminal was
on lock-down until its scheduled reopening on Tuesday morning at
4:30 a.m.

Though residents in Tallahassee were not required to leave their
homes, voluntary evacuations were posted for low lying areas and
residents living in mobile homes in anticipation of gusty winds and
heavy rains, which could still lead to flooding. County officials
opened four shelters, and greeted about 300 evacuees during the
height of the storm.

Emergency officials urged residents to stay indoors to allow
cleanup crews to remove fallen branches and power lines. As a
result of this need to reduce street traffic, Florida A&M
University, Florida State University, and Tallahassee Community
College will all be closed on Tuesday. Leon public schools will
also be off on Tuesday, as well as all state offices in the
county.

Thagard Student Health Center will be open Tuesday from 10 a.m.
to 2 p.m. and the Leach Center will be open Tuesday from 11 a.m. to
7 p.m. The Intrafraternity Council has cancelled all activities on
Tuesday night and will resume rush events Wednesday night.

Students took the storm with caution and made the best out of a
wet and windy Labor Day. Some prepared by buying supplies such as
flashlights, candles and snacks. Others survived the storm by going
outdoors and playing football in the mud on the intramural fields
and Landis Green. One group made the most of the heavy rain by
creating a slip-and-slide on Landis Green and sliding the storm
away.

As of Monday afternoon more than 3.2 million customers were
still without power in the state. The power outages were primarily
concentrated in central and southeast Florida, where the storm
first made landfall Saturday night.

For additional information on storm-related closures and
cancellations on campus, one may call 644-INFO or go online to
www.fsu.edu.