Florida, Florida State close campuses in advance of Tropical Storm Debby

The presence of Tropical Storm Debby in the Gulf of Mexico has caused the University of Florida and Florida State University to close their campuses on Monday, Aug. 5.

Both institutions announced the campus closures on Sunday afternoon.

According to the latest advisories from the National Hurricane Center, Debby could strengthen into a hurricane before making landfall on the Florida peninsula. The area has taken significant damage from storms like Tropical Storm Debby in recent years.

The closure at Florida State will run from 12 p.m. ET on Sunday, Aug. 4 until 11 p.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 5. That’s, of course, pending any potential damage the storm might cause.

Florida is only allowing essential personnel to come to campus on Monday, and it will make a further determination on whether campus will reopen on Tuesday. The university expects to make that announcement on Monday.

In the meantime, campus will be closed and classes for Monday, Aug. 5 are cancelled, including all academic and student-related activities, online classes and exams.

The university also announced that bus and shuttle services will be dictated by wind and weather conditions from Tropical Storm Debby.

The football teams for both Florida and Florida State have gotten underway in fall camp, with both programs gearing up for the 2024 season.

It’ll be a different story for each program, though, as Florida State is coming off an ACC championship and a perfect 13-0 regular season in 2023, while Florida is coming off its third straight losing season.

While Florida State coach Mike Norvell has things absolutely rolling in Tallahassee through masterful work of the transfer portal and strong recruiting, Florida coach Billy Napier is still looking to get things rolling going into his third season.

The Gators figure to have improved depth, particularly defensively, while boasting several key returning playmakers on offense.

Of course, football might end up on hold for a day or two depending on what Tropical Storm Debby does to the areas.

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