May 25, 2018 – Developing off the Yucatan Peninsula, Subtropical Storm Alberto has become the first named storm of the 2018 hurricane season, which doesn’t actually start until Friday, June 1, 2018. The storm became named as of the 11 a.m. Friday, May 25, update from the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
Subtropical storms are low pressure systems that have characteristics similar to both tropical storms and more traditional thunderstorm systems.
For the Santa Fe College service area, the biggest impacts could be felt throughout the day Sunday with heavy rains and increased winds. Early projections have the storm hitting the northern gulf coast between the coast of Louisiana below Lafayette and Panama City Beach, Florida, in the early hours of Monday morning.
The Santa Fe College Emergency Management team is monitoring the storm and will consult with college administrators if and when it is necessary. As of Friday afternoon, there are no plans to change the college’s schedule. SF will be closed for Memorial Day, and reopen for normal academic and business operations Tuesday, May 29.
The SF teaching Zoo also plans to operate on its standard schedule of 9 a.m. through 2 p.m., and the SFPD is always open, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.