Campus Alert Archive
Dillard

16 Years After Katrina, Ida Forces Dillard to Evacuate 51 Remaining Students to Mobile

LAhurricaneemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

Hurricane Ida made landfall August 29, 2021 -- the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina -- as a Category 4 storm with 150 mph winds near Port Fourchon, Louisiana. Dillard University, the New Orleans HBCU, had encouraged students to leave campus beginning August 27 and evacuated the remaining 51 students to Mobile, Alabama, by bus on the Tuesday after landfall, with classes resuming virtually September 13.

Alerts
3
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Dillard University
Hbcu · LA
~1,400 studentsDillard University Emergency Notifications
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

3 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Approximate reconstruction599 chars
Due to the imminent approach of Hurricane Ida, which is expected to make landfall as a major hurricane on Sunday, August 29, Dillard University strongly urges all on-campus students to return home or seek shelter with family or friends outside the path of the storm. Residence halls will close at 5 p.m. Saturday, August 28. Students who are unable to arrange housing away from campus must contact the Office of Residential Life immediately at 504-816-4654 so the University can arrange transportation. Campus will be closed until further notice. Updates: dillard.edu and DU Emergency Notifications.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Hard departure deadline of 5 p.m. Saturday with a phone number for students unable to arrange their own housing -- a specific accommodation for students without transport options
Dillard's small enrollment (~1,400) made individual student coordination feasible in a way larger institutions cannot manage
The August 29 landfall date -- the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina -- carried institutional weight for a Katrina-displaced HBCU that relocated after 2005
Reconstructed from secondary sources; exact DU alert text not publicly archived
UPDATETwitter/X
Approximate reconstruction318 chars
Dillard campus has experienced the initial impacts of Hurricane Ida. Damage so far: branches down across campus, some roof shingles lost, and the Lawless Hall window facing Gentilly Blvd has been blown out. Similar to last year's Zeta damage. We are assessing. Remaining students are safe in Dellman Hall. Update soon.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

President Kimbrough's Twitter post is the primary source for specific damage details: branches, roof shingles, Lawless Hall window on Gentilly Blvd
Comparison to Zeta damage is an institutional memory anchor -- Kimbrough could benchmark Ida's severity against last year's storm
Dellman Hall named as the shelter location for remaining students -- specific residential building disclosed
Reconstructed from Kimbrough's reported tweets and Higher Ed Dive; exact Twitter text may differ slightly
UPDATEEmail
Approximate reconstruction548 chars
Dillard University has completed the evacuation of its remaining on-campus students to Mobile, Alabama, where temporary housing has been arranged. All 51 students are safe. The university continues to assess campus damage and is working with utility providers on power restoration. New Orleans has no power or safe water. Students should NOT return to campus until further notice. Classes will resume virtually on September 13. Dillard will contact each student individually about fall semester arrangements. Contact us at ida-response@dillard.edu.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Number of evacuated students publicly disclosed: 51 -- unusual specificity that reflects Dillard's small enrollment and individual tracking capability
Mobile, Alabama was arranged through a Dillard graduate connection -- improvised logistics rather than a pre-planned evacuation destination
September 13 virtual restart date announced before power was restored to campus -- committed timeline reduces uncertainty for displaced students
Reconstructed from Higher Ed Dive and Inside Higher Ed reporting
Context

Background

Hurricane Ida made landfall on August 29, 2021 -- the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina -- as a Category 4 storm with 150 mph sustained winds near Port Fourchon, Louisiana. For Dillard University, a historically Black institution in New Orleans that was itself displaced for years after Katrina, Ida carried a particular weight. The university began encouraging departures on August 27 and set a hard residence-hall departure deadline for Saturday evening. Students who could not arrange their own transportation were directed to call the university directly, which then arranged bus evacuation to Mobile. A Dillard alumna in Mobile connected the university with housing. The 51 remaining students who sheltered in Dellman Hall before the storm were subsequently transported to Alabama by bus. President Walter Kimbrough described storm damage via Twitter as 'very similar to Zeta last year -- lots of branches down, a few roof shingles' with a Lawless Hall window blown out. Dillard announced a virtual restart on September 13, becoming one of the first New Orleans institutions to set a firm resumption date. The university also announced it would plan an eastern evacuation site in future hurricane plans -- a direct lesson learned from the Ida response.
Analysis

Key Findings

Dillard evacuated exactly 51 remaining students to Mobile, Alabama by bus -- individual-scale logistics only possible at a small HBCU
The August 29 landfall date coincided with the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, carrying deep institutional memory for a Katrina-displaced university
Mobile evacuation site was improvised through an alumna connection rather than a pre-planned destination, prompting a policy change
President Kimbrough's real-time Twitter damage assessment (Lawless Hall window, roof shingles) set a model for transparent institutional communication during a storm
Outcome
51 students evacuated to Mobile, Alabama by bus. Campus sustained tree damage, roof shingle loss, and a blown window at Lawless Hall. Classes resumed virtually September 13. Enrollment impacts from displaced students monitored.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Hurricane Ida continues to scramble campus plans -- Higher Ed Dive
    highereddive.com
  2. News
    New Orleans Colleges Hit by Ida Extend Campus Closures -- Inside Higher Ed
    insidehighered.com
  3. Source
    Hurricane Ida -- Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
  4. Official
    Hurricane Season Preparedness -- Dillard University
    dillard.edu
  5. Official
    Post-Hurricane Ida Resources -- Dillard University Residential Life Portal
    mydu.dillard.edu
Tags
hurricaneidalouisiananew-orleanshbcuevacuationkatrina-anniversaryemergency-notification2021
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion