University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State cancel classes Monday due to weather

Due to last week’s winter storm that dumped nearly 15 inches of snow on the Cedar Falls-Waterloo area and a foot in many other communities, the University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University are canceling classes Monday “to provide students more time to return to campus from Thanksgiving break.”

The University of Iowa in Iowa City had not canceled Monday classes, as of Sunday evening.

“Due to travel conditions from the recent winter storm, UNI is canceling classes on Monday, Dec. 1,” according to a brief UNI notice distributed Sunday.

Although ISU classes are canceled, that campus clarified the university will remain open for normal operations.

“Facilities Planning and Management crews will be working throughout the weekend to clear roads and sidewalks,” according to the ISU notice. “As always, university leaders encourage employees and students to put safety first when deciding to travel to campus during the winter months.

“If employees cannot make it to campus on Monday, they need to coordinate with their supervisor to arrange to work remotely or take leave.”

UNI’s Waterloo-Cedar Falls area received 14.5 inches of snow on Friday and Saturday, paired with low temperatures reaching 13 — about 10 degrees below normal, according to the National Weather Service. Monday’s predicted high of 20, with more snow likely, makes meaningful melting unlikely.

Iowa City, meanwhile, received a lesser total of about nine inches from the storm — with slightly warmer temperatures, but still more snow forecast for the coming week.

And Ames got the least of the three at about 7.5 inches, with less than a half inch more forecast for Monday.

In addition to hazardous road conditions throughout Iowa and the Midwest, tens of thousands of flights were delayed due to the storm. On Sunday afternoon, Flightaware.com was reporting more than 8,000 delays involving flights within, into, or out of the United States, along with nearly 700 cancellations affecting U.S. airports.

Nearby O’Hare International in Chicago on Sunday was reporting 658 flight delays, or 44 percent of its total, the most of any airport. It also was reporting 119 cancellations — about 8 percent of all flights.

Des Moines International Airport had 20 delays, about 22 percent of its total, and 24 canceled flights — or 27 percent of all flights.

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com