Rutgers Releases Sandy Report

While Hurricane Sandy bore down on New Jersey, Rutgers University was able to weather the storm without any campus injuries while at the same time evacuating students from their dorms, serving as an emergency shelter location for more than 7,000 people from around the state, and serving as a food distribution site. 

However, the university did not communicate as effectively as it could have with staff and students, and lacked sufficient backup power campus-wide, according to the Hurricane Sandy Emergency Preparedness Task Force Report released Tuesday by the university. 

Rutgers' response to Hurricane Sandy became a topic of discussion in September, when president Robert L. Barchi announced during a university address that the report was completed and suggested improvements contained therein were being implemented.

However, the report was not made immediately available to the university community, drawing critique from staff and students. 

According to a Star-Ledger report on NJ.com, the Newark and Camden campuses in particular weathered the storm without any major damage or injuries, but the university community struggled with obtaining clear information, including the days that employees were to return to work and when classes were canceled. 

Reporters with the Star-Ledger requested a copy of the report through the Open Public Records Act, but the release of the report was delayed as the university combed through the information to redact what could not be made public for "security reasons," the report said. 

To view the Hurricane Sandy report, click here.