University has plan for communicating when threatening weather is predicted

April 3, 2020

With spring being a time when severe storms that may include tornadoes are possible, Wake Forest has a plan in place for communicating with the University community about such weather.

On days when extraordinarily severe storms are predicted, the University’s plan calls for a message to be emailed to students, faculty and staff encouraging them to stay alert to weather reports.  Current forecasts are widely available on local TV stations, such as WXII, WGHP, WFMY and Spectrum’s News 14.  Information is also easily accessed from other news organizations, such as The Weather Channel. The University also has WeatherSTEM stations on top of the Miller Center and the scoreboard at BB&T Field.  They offer detailed weather information. The stations also offer information through Facebook and Twitter accounts

If the National Weather Service issued a tornado watch or warning, Wake Forest would activate the Wake Alert emergency notification system to inform students, faculty and staff using several communication methods.  For a warning, the University would use email, voice mail (cell phones registered to receive University alerts), text, the University website (including the Wake Alert website) and social media, at least.  For a watch, all but voice mail would be used.  The University, potentially, would use additional methods.

For more information about how the University communicates about emergencies and similar safety/security matters, visit Wake Ready.