South Florida schools reopening after Hurricane Milton
MIAMI — Hurricane Milton, which made landfall on Florida's west coast late Wednesday as a Category 3 storm, led to closures affecting schools, county offices and transportation services across South Florida.
Many schools and offices remained closed on Thursday after the storm passed and began to move over the Atlantic Ocean.
K-12 schools
Miami-Dade County's school district will reopen Friday after closing campuses on Tuesday evening, and canceling classes and closing offices on Wednesday.
Broward County's school district said it will reopen and resume normal operations on Friday after it shut down offices and school-related activities on Tuesday afternoon
Monroe County's school district will reopen on Friday after it closed all campuses and district offices on Wednesday and Thursday.
Palm Beach County's school district closed campuses from Tuesday through Thursday. Tuesday was already a Professional Development Day.
All Archdiocese of Miami Catholic schools in Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties closed Wednesday and Thursday. Activities after 5 p.m. Tuesday have been canceled. They will reopen on Friday.
Palmer Trinity School canceled all after-school activities for Tuesday, and classes won't take place on Wednesday and Thursday. The school said it anticipates reopening on Friday but has not yet made an official announcement.
Universities, colleges
Florida International University will reopen on Friday after being closed due to Milton.
Florida Atlantic University suspended operations and classes, including online ones, at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. Students residing on campus in Boca Raton and Jupiter are currently permitted to stay on campus. Residents are permitted to park their vehicles in Parking Garage I or II.
University of Miami reverted to a remote format for classes on the Coral Gables and Marine campuses from 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. All in-person meetings and campus events are canceled. UHealth clinical operations will continue on normal schedules, except for Bascom Palmer Eye Institute Naples and Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Naples, which are closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
Nova Southeastern University closed its Fort Lauderdale/Davie, Kendall, Miramar, Oceanographic (Dania Beach) and West Palm Beach campuses from 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. The Fort Meyers, Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa Bay/Clearwater campuses also will be closed Friday and were closed Monday except for Fort Myers. NSU University School and NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale, NSU Health clinics across the tri-county area were closed 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
Miami Dade College's campuses suspended operations and classes starting at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
Broward College's campuses suspended operations and classes, including online, for Wednesday and Thursday.
Palm Beach State College's campuses are closed Tuesday through Thursday.
The University of Florida will reopen Friday after closing its offices and canceling classes on Wednesday morning. There were no plans to evacuate student residents of the Gainesville campus.
University of Central Florida in Orlando suspended operations on all campuses and online classes from Tuesday through Friday. UCF Housing will remain open but campus services will be closed.
All University of South Florida in-person classes and offices are closed Monday through at least Thursday. A decision on Friday operations will be announced Thursday. The residence halls on the Tampa campus closed at 8 a.m. Tuesday. Students who need a safe place to stay were transported to Jennings Middle School in Seffner on Tuesday morning. Residence halls in St. Petersburg and Sarasota-Manatee closed at noon Monday. Those needing a safe place to stay were transported to the Tampa campus and were transported to Jennings Middle School with the Tampa campus students.
Florida Gulf Coast University classes shifted to remote operations Monday, including classes. The campus in Lee County is closed Tuesday through Friday. Students who live in campus housing and choose to stay on campus will be sheltered in a private space within Alico Arena.
New College of Florida closed its Sarasota campus from Monday through Friday. All students living on campus were evacuated by noon Monday and for those with nowhere to go Sudakoff Conference Center will be available as a shelter.
Nova Southeastern University closed its Fort Lauderdale/Davie, Kendall, Miramar, Oceanographic (Dania Beach) and West Palm Beach campuses from 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. Also, NSU University School and NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale, NSU Health clinics across the tri-county area were closed 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
Barry University's campuses closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
Transportation
The South Florida Regional Transportation Authority will resume Tri-Rail services on Friday after suspending operations on Wednesday and Thursday. Crossing gates must be secured whenever sustained winds of 39 mph are forecasted. Once the crossing gates are secured railroad activity must be suspended, including Amtrak and CSXT freight.
Brightline ceased operations all day Wednesday and Thursday between West Palm Beach and Orlando. Service between all South Florida stations is expected to continue with 14 roundtrips both days. On Tuesday, Brightline's 7:45 p.m. northbound departure from Miami will terminate in West Palm Beach. All other Tuesday departures will operate as scheduled.
Palm Tran suspended certain services at noon Wednesday.
Broward Transit running with some routes detours. Metrorail and Metromover running.
Government offices
Miami-Dade County's non-essential government offices, including the courts, will be closed Wednesday and Thursday.
Broward County buildings, including courts, closed Wednesday and Thursday.
Monroe County's on-essential government offices, including the courts, closed Wednesday and Thursday.
Fort Laudedale's State of the City Address, originally scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed until 7 p.m. Monday.
Health
The Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade and Broward counties closed offices Wednesday. The Miami-Dade Office said it will reopen on Friday but the Broward County location has not yet shared reopening plans.
All South Florida Blue Centers locations were closed at 3 p.m. Wednesday until further notice. This includes locations in Miami, Hialeah, North Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Sawgrass, Palm Beach and Port St. Lucie. This also includes centers inside of Sanitas Medical Centers.
Roads
Bridges ware being locked down in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
The Florida Department of Transportation and the U.S. Coast Guard announced Monday they are locking down bridges on the Miami River, the Intercoastal Waterway and Tamiami Bridge in Miami-Dade County. They will be closed to marine navigation once lockdowns are complete and will remain closed for the duration of severe weather and until the drawbridges and waterways can be assessed for damages. All mariners must seek safe harbor before noon Tuesday.
Also, starting at noon Tuesday FDOT will lock down the bridges at SE 17th Street, Las Olas Boulevard, Sunrise Boulevard, Oakland Boulevard, Commercial Boulevard and Davie Boulevard.
Florida East Coast Railway will lock down the New River Crossing at 10 a.m. Wednesday.
FDOT has also re-scheduled the commencement of the pedestrian bridge replacement project from this week to the week of Oct. 14. The bridge will cross State Road 90/US 41/SW Eighth Street just west of SW 109th Avenue in Miami-Dade County.
Entertainment
The Miami Heat's preseason game against the Atlanta Hawks at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Kaseya Center has been postponed until Wednesday, October 16 at 7:30 p.m. All tickets for the originally scheduled date will be honored for the rescheduled date. Refunds will be available at the point of purchase for any fans unable to attend the rescheduled date.
Zoo Miami is closed Tuesday through Thursday.
King + Country at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood originally scheduled for Thursday has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 7:30 p.m. All tickets for the show will remain valid for the rescheduled date. Guests who can no longer attend can get refunds at the point of purchase up to the newly scheduled date.
Usher's Past Present Future Tour at Kaseya Center in Miami has been rescheduled. The concert scheduled for Friday will Monday, Dec. 16 and the Saturday one will be Thursday, Dec. 19. All previously purchased tickets will be honored for the new date.