The Universidad de Murcia announced on Thursday, 17 September 2026suspended in-person teaching and other on-site activities at its campuses in Lorca and San Javier and at the Faculty of Nursing (Facultad de Enfermería) in Cartagena for the entire day. The university cites the severe weather forecast for Region Murcia and refers to the corresponding warnings from the state weather service Aemet. The suspension was initially planned for a limited period, but is now in force for the whole day.
According to the university, the measure covers all scheduled in-person classes at the affected locations. Digital formats are unaffected, provided teaching staff offer them. The university says it will announce arrangements such as rescheduling and opportunities to make up classes afterwards. The resumption of normal operations at the three locations will be announced following a fresh assessment of the situation.
The extension is part of further precautionary measures in the Region of Murcia. Several municipalities had ordered schools to close until early afternoon on Thursday to minimise the risks from heavy rain. These municipal decisions had already been announced the previous day in light of the weather forecasts. The university decision explicitly applies to the locations in Lorca, San Javier and Cartagena; no equivalent orders have been issued for the Universidad de Murcia’s other campuses.
The university and the relevant services have stated the reasons and forecasts: the university cites precautionary measures to protect students and staff, while statements about further weather developments come from Aemet. Initially, no specific information was available about damage or disruption beyond the preventive suspension of in-person activities.
The university advises students and staff to check the latest information from the Universidad de Murcia and notices from the regional emergency and weather services before travelling to or from campus. The university plans to publish further information about the return to normal operations after assessing the weather situation. The move highlights how universities in Spain are increasingly taking early preventive action in response to severe weather warnings, easing travel and allowing in-person classes to be moved flexibly.
Editor: Andreas M. Brucker (Article created with AI assistance).