The Independent Student Newspaper of St. John's University

The Torch

The Independent Student Newspaper of St. John's University

The Torch

The Independent Student Newspaper of St. John's University

The Torch

Campuses open on Wednesday, storm brings minimal snow

New+York+City+expected+to+be+slammed+by+a+blizzard+Tuesday%2C+prompting+St.+Johns+to+cancel+Tuesday+classes.+The+storm+was+not+as+strong+as+expected%2C+and+hit+Queens+mostly+with+sleet.+
Bryant Rodriguez
New York City expected to be slammed by a blizzard Tuesday, prompting St. John’s to cancel Tuesday classes. The storm was not as strong as expected, and hit Queens mostly with sleet.

A fierce Nor’easter was expected to pound New York City with up to two feet of snow on Tuesday. But when students woke up in the morning, a different scene caught their eye: a few inches of snow, and a lot of sleet.

Winter storm Stella prompted a blizzard warning to be put into effect for NYC three days prior to the storm making landfall. But while the National Weather Service was predicting significant snow, wind and cold for the five boroughs, the blizzard warning was called off by 8 a.m. Tuesday and a winter weather advisory was put into effect.

Bryant Rodriguez
Paths on campus were cleared as of 4 p.m. Tuesday.

As of 3 p.m., the highest snow total in Queens was 7.8 inches in Queens Village, according to the National Weather Service.

In Queens, the storm was far weaker than expected. But people in Connecticut, New Jersey and the lower Hudson Valley—only about an hour and a half drive from SJU—were experiencing the brunt of the blizzard that seemed to mostly bypass the city, according to the Queens Chronicle.

Weather predictions prompted officials at St. John’s on Monday afternoon to cancel Tuesday classes. Above ground MTA train service was halted, and a state of emergency was declared at midnight in NYC. Metro North railroad service also stopped running at noon.

As of 4:05 p.m. Tuesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that above-ground MTA service would resume at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Limited Metro North service will also resume at 6 p.m., NBC New York reported.

Tuesday was the second snow day of the school year for St. John’s students. All campuses will be open on Wednesday, March 15, according to a Public Safety email.

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About the Contributors
Suzanne Ciechalski, Editor-in-Chief
Suzanne Ciechalski is a senior journalism major with a minor in government and politics. In her second year as EIC, she hopes to continue increasing the Torch’s editorial content by spanning coverage to include news within the local community outside of SJU, and breaking news. She also hopes to expand the Torch’s visibility by building on the paper’s online presence and by reaching out to students through stories, journalism workshops and other events. Before graduating, she hopes to instill an element of community service within the Torch by reaching out to local high schools about how the Torch can help them build on their current newspaper, or develop one. Suzanne has been with the Torch for three years, previously serving as the opinion editor and as a staff writer. Have any questions? Email Suzanne at [email protected]
Bryant Rodriguez, Managing Editor Emeritus
Bryant Rodriguez is a senior majoring in enterprise regulation. He worked towards the Torch reaching a wider audience and increasing student participation through developing a greater online presence along with a revamped social and interactive media experience with the help of the social media, design and photo teams. Along with promoting the newspaper, Bryant was focused on the future of the publication, managing the business side of the paper. He was a part of the Torch for 3 years and will graduate this coming May.

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