The University of Queensland (UQ) is in full swing of flood recovery and is preparing for a strong start to the first 2011 semester.
UQ Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Greenfield, said a core of staff had worked around the clock to mitigate flood damage and manage the aftermath.
“We are developing a recovery plan to gear us up for the arrival of most students at the end of February, and for the months beyond,” Professor Greenfield said.
“Our key concern remains the welfare of students and staff, because significant numbers of them live in - or have families and friends living in - devastated suburbs and regions.
“We are acutely aware that our colleagues and students are suffering significant personal loss and The University will offer financial and counselling support to staff and additional paid leave to those staff who need time to address their personal situation as a result of the floods.
“Counselling is available to students and the University is working with the student union on options for financial assistance.
“In terms of facilities, our priorities have been the St Lucia and Gatton campuses, which were the most severely affected.
“Because January is a university holiday for most students and many staff, these campuses were not fully populated when the floods hit.
“UQ Gatton was isolated for a few days, but is now up and running and will host an evacuation centre for people from Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley regions.
“Animal welfare has been a priority at UQ Gatton throughout the flood, and the School of Veterinary Science is now an animal rescue centre for the region.”
UQ’s St Lucia campus bounced back from prior inundations including the notorious 1974 flood, and would regenerate strongly in the weeks and months ahead, Professor Greenfield said.
“Most of the St Lucia teaching and research facilities, including libraries and museums, are on high ground above the flood line.
“This means it will be close to business-as-usual on February 28, when the academic year officially begins.
“The areas of greatest impact are green spaces and sports facilities, including the tennis courts, pool, sport and fitness centre, playing fields and athletics centre.
“These are important to many students, staff, community members and elite sports people.
“Some residential colleges have been disrupted, and although they are not managed by UQ they are vital to our community.
“So the University will work closely with colleges and with UQ Sport (which manages sports assets) to restore their damaged facilities.”
Professor Greenfield praised staff who worked to minimise damage and are now involved in the recovery.
He also thanked people from organisations that have assisted UQ, including the Queensland Police, Brisbane City Council and Griffith University.
UQ Flood Update
UQ’s cleanup crew cleared most roads within the St Lucia campus yesterday and is now starting work on cleaning affected buildings and restoring services throughout the campus.
The road cleanup team graded and washed down most roads yesterday and will finish the section between the boat shed and the Eleanor Schonnel Bridge and Fred Schonell Drive today.
Two further electricity substations have been restored and power has been reconnected to the Axon and Sir James Foots Buildings (except for the lower levels). Power has been fully restored to the Connell and General Purpose South Buildings.
UQ’s security systems are fully operational from an alternate control site and the majority of chiller systems are back on line. Information and technology systems are fully operational at the St Lucia campus.
The focus of the recovery work will initially be on the Human Movement Studies area, which is the main teaching and learning facility that experienced flood damage.
There is considerable work still to be done before the campus can be confirmed as being safe and The University is continuing to work on the restoration of the sewage system.
All UQ’s support and services areas, the glasshouse area and sporting facilities have received significant damage and work is ongoing in these sections of the campus.
The City Cat terminal is not operational and will not be for some time. The Margaret Cribb Child Care Centre also received significant damage.
The Gatton campus has a limited potable water supply and residents and staff are conserving water. The mains water supply is expected to be re-connected to the Gatton campus later today. Power and communications have been restored.
(The first dramatic photos of the floods surrounding the Gatton campus have been received from Dr Susan Keane of the UQ School of Veterinary Science. They can be viewed at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/uqnews/sets/72157625826637554/)
All non-university vehicles and cyclists are not allowed access to the St Lucia campus. Staff and students are asked to stay off campus until Thursday, 20 January 2011.
If a staff member believes there is equipment that has sustained damage directly resulting from the flood, it is imperative that before attempting any repairs or recovery themselves, they must contact Geoff Dennis, Deputy Director P&F, who is coordinating the University’s insurance cover.
UQ 24-hour Flood Hotline
The University has established 24-hour hotlines for enquiries relating to the floods at UQ:
General enquiries: 07 3346 4444 (within Australia) or +61 7 3346 4444 (international).
Student administration: 07 3346 4446 (within Australia) or +61 7 3346 4446 (international).
General and student administration enquiries sent by SMS: 0434 603 132 (within Australia) or +61 4434 603 132 (SMS enquiries may only be sent to this mobile number)
The lines will operate 24-hours every day.
Campus reopening and access
University campuses will reopen on Thursday, January 20, allowing staff time to assist in the recovery operations.
In the meantime, staff and students are requested to delay non-essential access until Thursday.
Access to the St Lucia campus will remain controlled up until and including Wednesday, 19 January 2011 for reasons of safety, practical issues such as sewage system operations and to prevent unauthorised access to buildings.
Any UQ staff member requested to attend the campus should have their manager advise security by calling 07 3365 1234 so that 'access control' is notified. Staff entering the campus must show their UQ identification to 'access control' at entry points.
Work is progressing quickly on clearing car park areas, roads and pathways. The University will provide details of access and public transport in the next 24 to 48 hours.
Summer Semester
For students enrolled in summer semester, it is expected the class timetable will recommence on January 20.
Additional classes may be scheduled in revision week, from Monday, January 31 until February 4, with examinations still being held as usual.
The following details have been confirmed:
• The duration of Summer Semester will not be extended (ends 12/2/2011);
• The revision week (31/1/2011 - 4/2/2011) will become a teaching week, to be used at the discretion of the course coordinator, to make up lost classes if required;
• If possible, examinations will be re-scheduled to the latter part of the central examination period (5/2/2011 – 12/2/2011), to allow maximum time for student revision if classes are conducted in revision week (to be confirmed).
Course coordinators have recently been emailed to advise them of these arrangements and to ask them to decide how best to alter their course delivery and assessment to accommodate these unexpected events.
Course coordinators have been asked also, to communicate these arrangements to students as soon as possible, using email and/or Blackboard. However, students are asked to be patient waiting for this advice, because many members of academic staff have also been affected personally by the flooding and may not be able to access or respond to their email.
Prior to making any decision with regard to your enrolment in courses please contact an academic advisor in your faculty.
If students have been so disrupted or upset by this tragedy that they wish to withdraw from their summer course (other than courses that were delivered in Teaching Period 6 that concluded before Christmas), the University will be sympathetic to such applications, and will consider allowing withdrawal without academic penalty and financial liability.
Students should consult the MyAdvisor web site to access application forms for withdrawal without Academic Penalty and Removal of Financial Liability – links below: Application for withdrawal without academic penalty Application for removal of financial liability
Volunteering
Anyone who would like to volunteer to help with the cleanup at UQ can register their interest by calling the general enquiries hotline 07 3346 4444.
Daily updates on the UQ flood recovery are posted online at www.uq.edu.au
For media inquiries contact: Kathy Grube (0418 524 297) or Jan King (0413 601 248).
