Storm Eunice hits Birmingham causing havoc for UoB students

Storm Eunice has hit the UK today with strong winds and heavy rain causing chaos for many students at the University of Birmingham. The storm was at its worst in Birmingham between midday and 2pm this afternoon, with 63mph winds at 1pm according to the Met Office.

Students walking through the streets of Selly witnessed multiple bins that had fallen over, ‘For Sale’ signs blown off of houses and high speed winds blowing tree branches everywhere.

The Birmingham Tab asked students whether their lectures had been affected by Storm Eunice with 72 per cent saying no and 28 per cent saying yes. Depending on the type of course different departments were more affected than others.

One student told The Birmingham Tab: “My train was severely delayed” showing how delays to train times have caused chaos for many students, with another student saying how they are “trapped at my partner’s grandparents in Hampshire”.

Many students have been affected by the impact of the storm with the poor weather conditions continuing into this evening, potentially causing further travel disruptions this weekend.

Another student said how the closure of the UB Sport & Fitness centre has meant their “training session had to be cancelled.” This has been the case for many sports clubs as the UB Sport & Fitness have had to close temporarily due to wind damage on the front of the building. 64 per cent of students asked said they had been affected by the closure, with 36 per cent saying no.

Those needing their daily gym fix will have to wait until tomorrow when UB Sport & Fitness expect to re-open but for now Tiverton Gym remains open for those who are members there.

A representative for UB Sports & Fitness told The Birmingham Tab: “We have had to close Sport & Fitness due to a piece of loose cladding on the exterior of the building which would be a safety risk if we allowed anyone in the vicinity of the main entrance. The fire service are in attendance now fixing the problem. Once it has been secured and we are sure that there will be no further damage caused by the wind, the building will be safe to re-open, which we expect to be tomorrow morning.”

UB Sport & Fitness is currently cornered off

Further disruption has been caused by the storm with two marquees on campus closing until the weather has calmed down, including the study space on the Green Heart.

One student even witnessed the top of a tree on the Green Heart falling off around 2pm this afternoon. Haider Ali told The Birmingham Tab: “Everyone’s head on the Green Heart turned in one direction and that was to face the crumbling tree.” He captured the immediate aftermath in a video posted to the Fab N Fresh Facebook page. Luckily no one was hurt by the falling tree top.

Trees falling over aren’t the only disruption for students today. A writer for The Birmingham Tab said that: “both my fences have fallen down today”. If your fence or bin wasn’t blown over this morning, do you really live in Selly Oak?

However, for some students, Storm Eunice has caused little disruption due to strikes already cancelling their lectures.  In-person strike action was called off today in light of the storm, with the BUCU asking staff and students to support strikes from home.

71 per cent of students related to one students comment about strikes affecting university life more than Storm Eunice.

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