Storm Results in Downed Trees, Travel Hazards
Expect delays as crews respond to down trees and disabled street lights
Update: 9:45 a.m., Aug. 18, 2023:
The Sarah P. Duke Gardens will remain closed this weekend and into next week as crews work to remove more than 30 trees that were damaged or destroyed, including 16 very large trees that the high winds brought down.
Power has been restored to most off-campus buildings, and traffic lights around campus are operational.
Update: 6 a.m., Aug. 17, 2023:
Duke Police confirm that many traffic lights around campus are still not operational. Temporary four-way stop signs have been placed at intersections to help with the flow of traffic until traffic lights have been restored.
Use caution and allow extra time to travel to and around campus.
Update: 3 p.m., Aug. 16, 2023:
Overall, officials have identified more than 85 trees on campus that were blown over during the storm. East Campus was especially hard hit with downed trees. While some trees have been removed already, but there is still considerable debris remaining.Crews continue to work to clear the campus.
All Duke roads and parking lots are open, but several traffic lights around the campus are not yet operations. Four-way stop signs have been placed at those intersections to help with the flow of traffic.
Campus and hospital buildings have power, but many off-campus locations served by Duke Energy still do not have power. Duke Energy reports there are 50,000 people in Durham currently without power. Restoration times are unknown.
Update: 12:30 p.m., Aug. 16, 2023:
The City of Durham has updated its website with these storm-related traffic updates.
Additionally, on campus, the Sarah P. Duke Gardens is temporarily closed due to heavy storm damage.
Update: 7:45 a.m., Aug. 16, 2023:
All traffic lights on campus are out, so please use caution. Also, about 20 off-campus buildings do not have power. Due to power outages, the following locations are without network connectivity:
1515 Hull St
1517 Hull St
2101 Campus Dr
2111 Campus Dr
300 Swift
306 Alexander
402 Oregon
406 Oregon
406 Swift
408 Swift
410 Swift
Brightleaf
Devil Den
Faculty Club
Forestry
Nasher Storage
Newman Catholic
Primate Center
Washington Golf Maintenance
Unfortunately, there is no estimated time to resolution.
If you have questions about this outage or would like to report additional service impacts, please contact the OIT Service Desk (https://oit.duke.edu/help) or join the conversation on the 'University IT Outage Communication' MS Teams site.
Update 8:40 p.m. Aug. 15, 2023:
The light at NC 751 (Cameron Blvd.) and Science Drive is down. It is not expected to be operational Wednesday morning, however, emergency personnel will staff the intersection.
Other roadways in Durham are hazardous due to storm damage. Please avoid unnecessary travel at this time to allow crews to work safely on emergency response. For updates on city road closures, see the city of Durham Police Department's updates here.
Original Post:
The severe thunderstorm that passed through Durham this afternoon resulted in downed trees in several areas, including Campus Drive, Duke University Road, and Erwin Road. Street lights along Anderson Street and Erwin Road are also not working currently.
Emergency crews are responding to the areas, but please use caution when traveling and expect delays due to road hazards.
More information will be posted on Duke Today as information becomes available.