General Guidelines
Residential Spaces
- Fully charge your electronic devices when a large storm is predicted
- During an outage:
- Use caution in your room, bathrooms, hallways, and stairwells—nighttime lighting will be minimal.
- Unplug non-essential appliances and equipment
- Turn off electric heaters and cooking appliances
- Open windows for additional ventilation in warmer months and open shades for daylight
- Monitor your email for updates from campus security
- If weather conditions are not hazardous, consider relocating to:
- a campus building unaffected by the outage
- a campus building with full generator power (Smith Union or Thorne Hall)
- wear extra clothing and use extra blankets, as only residual heat may be available during portions of an outage
- Contact Security 207-725-3314 if you need assistance
- If weather conditions are not hazardous, consider relocating to:
Do not light candles if the power goes out. Candles are not permitted in campus buildings.
Classes, Labs and Other Academic Activities
Due to the challenges associated with relocating classes, classes in buildings without power may need to be cancelled by the dean for academic affairs. Depending on the time of day and season, faculty have the discretion to hold classes in buildings with a standby generator and/or there is sufficient daylight. And as is always the case, faculty may cancel the class on their own if they are unable to travel to campus.
The following academic buildings do not have a standby generator or, in the case of Druckenmiller Hall, the standby generator is not sufficient for full building ventilation. These buildings must close during an extended outage (i.e., restoration not expected for at least two hours). While closed, access to these buildings is limited to authorized employees for emergency purposes.
Adams Hall
Banister Hall/Chapel
Druckenmiller Hall
Edwards Arts Center
Gibson Hall
Ham House
Hubbard Hall
Massachusetts Hall
Pols House
Riley House
Studzinski Recital Hall
When an outage occurs in the middle of a class or lab:
- remain in place for fifteen minutes and wait for power to resume
- monitor email for updates from campus security
- if power does not return, or is not expected to return soon, class may resume in buildings with a standby generator and sufficient daylight. Otherwise, if weather conditions are not hazardous, exit the building and go to:
- a building unaffected by the outage
- a building with full generator power (Smith Union, Thorne Hall)
- your residence hall (for students)
- go home if you can safely (for faculty and staff)
- labs should follow established protocols for closing fume hoods and shutting down equipment
- Activity in any laboratory space during an outage should be limited to essential activities (e.g., animal care, equipment maintenance, critical support activities).
- contact campus security 207-725-3314 for any assistance required
Academic and Administrative Offices
During an extended building power outage where restoration within two hours is unlikely, campus buildings and offices that are not supported with a full-service generator will close. Select offices will remain open with essential staffing to support student safety and well-being, including dining services, facilities, health services, and security. Outside of these listed offices, other staff may be deemed essential by their supervisor based on continuing activities on campus (e.g., select IT staff may be deemed essential during and extended power outage where at least some classes are continuing).
Employees not deemed essential by their supervisor who have power at home and the ability to do so successfully should work from home.
If power is restored prior to 1:00 p.m. and a weather emergency has ended or has not been declared, all offices will reopen within a reasonable timeframe for staff to return to campus. Employees working successfully from home should check with their supervisor prior to returning to campus. Reopening is not expected when power restoration is anticipated to occur on or after 1:00 p.m.
Hourly employees unable to perform their jobs from home and not deemed essential for work on campus during an outage will receive instructions from payroll on how to record their time.
Admission Tours
Depending on weather conditions and scope of the outage, the senior vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid will decide whether to cancel, revise the tour route, or continue with scheduled tours.
Athletics
The athletic director coordinates with administrative staff and coaches on any power outage-related changes to games or practices who then notify team members, officials, and opposing teams, as necessary. Indoor practices and contests will be delayed or cancelled while daylit outdoor practices and, in some cases, contests will take place as scheduled.
Clubs and Other Extracurricular Programs
Clubs and other student programs with meetings or programs scheduled in buildings without power should either cancel or find available spaces in buildings with full power.
Dining Services
Both Thorne Hall and Smith Union have full power backup generators enabling regular dining. In the event of a power outage in Moulton Union, all student meals will be served out of Thorne Hall.
The Thorne Hall dining room will also be open to students outside of normal meal hours during a power outage to recharge devices, study, and stay connected.
Events
The events office coordinates with the event sponsor and posts any scheduling changes related to a power outage on CampusGroups.
Libraries and Museums
During an extended power outage where restoration within two hours is unlikely, staff should ensure all students and visitors have exited the building prior to closing. Once power is restored, and a weather emergency has not been called, the director(s), in consultation with the Office of the Dean for Academic Affairs, will set a reopening time far enough in the future to allow staff sufficient time to return to campus. Reopening is not expected when power restoration is anticipated to occur within four hours of a regularly scheduled closing time.