Campus is empty and icy. (Avi Holzman | Student Life)

Due to icy conditions in St. Louis, all classes and student activities on Monday, Jan. 22 are virtual. Most dining locations are closed on campus or have modified hours, and the Sumers Recreation Center and the South 40 gym will be closed all day.

The University sent an emergency notification out at 8:36 a.m. alerting students to the campus closures. 

Portions of Illinois and Missouri have been affected by freezing rain and additional ice accumulations up to two-tenths of an inch, according to the Weather Channel. The Weather Channel has a “Winter Weather Advisory” in effect until 6 p.m. CST today.

Many professors are shifting to Zoom for the day, while others are fully canceling classes.

The following dining locations are closed all day: the DUC, Corner 17 at Whispers Cafe, Collins Farms at Law Cafe, LaJoy Coffee at Parkside, Beast Craft BBQ at Parkside, Coffeestamp at Grounds for Change, The Fattened Caf. at Bytes Cafe, and Cherry Tree.

Paws & Go has opened as of 10:45 a.m.

Cafe Bergson is serving coffee only, and the Village Cafe is offering grill and coffee services. The Bear’s Den (BD) will be operating under regular business hours with limited options.

Mary Anderson, a dining service employee at BD, outlined the bare-bones operation that Dining Services is running today at BD. 

“I am the only front-of-the-house person, so Cherry Tree and Paws & Go cannot open,” Anderson said. “I don’t have anybody to open them. We do have a very small skeleton crew of folks in the back, so I imagine it will just be the grill open today.” 

Sophomore Aya Abdelhameed voiced appreciation for the workers who were able to come to work today.

“I just want to shout out the workers for still making it to campus,” she said.

Anderson said that she lives close to campus and that workers still had to staff BD today due to student needs.

“We still got kids to feed, no matter what,” Anderson said. 

Sophomore Yoana Zamora Miranda said she wished the University had provided earlier notice about the closures and the potential effects of the weather.

“I feel like because this was weather that was expected from last night, they should have given us more of a heads up, especially to prepare food,” she said. 

Sam Fox administrators sent out an email last night informing students of the inclement weather and the possibility of campus closures. In their email, the administrators wrote that “faculty will have the discretion to move classes online or otherwise adjust as needed in light of severe weather conditions.”

Miranda said she wished the University had sent out a similar announcement to students across colleges to provide more notice about possible campus closures.

“I think I would appreciate it if there was a larger University-wide policy that was applicable to everyone,” she said.

This is a developing story. Given how campus operates, certain locations mentioned could open or close throughout the day.