Campus Alert Archive
Tulane

Three Years After Katrina, Tulane's New Evacuation Plan Faces Gustav

LAhurricaneemergency notificationmedium confidence

As Hurricane Gustav threatened New Orleans almost exactly three years after Hurricane Katrina devastated Tulane University, the university executed the evacuation plan it had rebuilt after 2005. In late August 2008, Tulane evacuated students — many on buses bound for a shelter at Jackson State University in Mississippi — closed its uptown and downtown campuses for the week, and used its home page weather bulletins, toll-free emergency lines, and alerts to keep the community informed. The campus reopened and classes resumed Monday, September 8, 2008.

Alerts
3
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Tulane University
Private R1 · LA
~13,000 studentsTulane Emergency Alert
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 ALERTWebsite
Approximate reconstruction346 chars
Due to the approach of Hurricane Gustav, Tulane University is activating its emergency plan. The uptown and downtown campuses will close and students living in residence halls must evacuate. Buses will transport students who need transportation to a designated shelter. Monitor the Tulane home page and the emergency information line for updates.

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

Reconstructed: Tulane News confirms the university evacuated students, bused some to a shelter readied at Jackson State University, and posted weather bulletins and toll-free emergency lines on its home page; the verbatim notice text is not preserved.
This evacuation was the first major real-world test of the hurricane plan Tulane rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina struck almost exactly three years earlier in 2005.
Students without their own transportation boarded evacuation buses bound for a gym at Jackson State University being readied as a shelter for up to 1,000 people.
UPDATEWebsite
Approximate reconstruction273 chars
Update: Hurricane Gustav has passed. Tulane grounds crews are working to ready the uptown and downtown campuses. The campuses remain closed while preparations continue. Students should not return until residence halls reopen; watch the home page for the reopening schedule.

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

Reconstructed: Tulane News reported ground crews worked to get both campuses ready for business as usual before students returned; the exact update wording is not preserved.
This is an update rather than an all-clear because it still instructs students not to return until residence halls reopen.
Tulane's home page served as the central channel, featuring weather bulletins and reopening information during the closure.
ALL CLEARWebsite
Approximate reconstruction263 chars
Tulane University will resume normal operations. The uptown and downtown campuses are ready, residence halls will reopen to students on Sunday, and classes will resume on Monday, September 8. Welcome back; thank you for your patience during the Gustav evacuation.

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

Reconstructed: Tulane News confirms the campus reopened over the weekend, residence halls opened Sunday, and classes resumed Monday, September 8, 2008; the verbatim reopening notice is not preserved.
This is the genuine all-clear because it lifts the closure and sets the return-to-operations schedule.
The smooth reopening was widely cited as evidence that Tulane's post-Katrina emergency planning had matured.
Context

Background

Hurricane Gustav approached southeast Louisiana in late August 2008, prompting a historic regional evacuation almost exactly three years after Hurricane Katrina. For Tulane University, which had been forced to close for an entire semester after Katrina in 2005, Gustav was the first full test of the rebuilt evacuation plan. The university evacuated students — busing some to a shelter at Jackson State University in Mississippi, closed both campuses for the week, and used its home page weather bulletins, toll-free emergency lines, and alerts as the spine of its communications. Crews readied the campuses over the weekend, residence halls reopened Sunday, and classes resumed Monday, September 8, 2008. The episode is a useful contrast to Tulane's catastrophic 2005 experience and an example of disaster-driven emergency notification in the early-Clery-alert era.
Analysis

Key Findings

Gustav was the first major test of the hurricane evacuation plan Tulane rebuilt after Katrina's 2005 devastation
Tulane bused students without transportation to a shelter readied at Jackson State University in Mississippi
The university used its home page, weather bulletins, and toll-free emergency lines as primary communication channels
Both campuses closed for the week and reopened smoothly, with classes resuming Monday, September 8, 2008, and no campus casualties
Outcome
Tulane successfully evacuated students and staff ahead of Gustav with no campus casualties. Crews readied the uptown and downtown campuses over the weekend, residence halls reopened to students on Sunday, and classes resumed Monday, September 8, 2008.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Official
    Tulane University Successfully Reopens Campus, Resumes Classes - Tulane University News
    news.tulane.edu
  2. Source
    Effect of Hurricane Katrina on Tulane University - Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
  3. Source
    Hurricane Gustav - Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
Tags
hurricanelouisianaevacuationgustavpost-katrinanew-orleansno-injuries
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion