News

Preparations for Hurricane Dorian in Puerto Rico and Southeastern United States, August 28, 2019

August 28, 2019

Update: September 4, 2019, 12:00 p.m. EST

Tropical storm Dorian is now forecasted to affect some of our members in the east coast of the U.S.

We are in touch with all of our members and students as they make preparations for the storm. No mandatory evacuations have been issued at this time in locations where ISEP students are studying. Classes are cancelled in most locations where the storm is predicted to pass by.

Please follow the Alert pages on the individual university websites for the most up to date information:

Georgia Southern University

East Carolina University

University of North Carolina Pembroke



Update: August 29, 2019, 3:00 p.m. EST

All ISEP Students are accounted for and safe. There was minimal impact to Puerto Rico. We are now monitoring Dorian’s projected trajectory of making landfall in mainland U.S. early next week.

Eckerd College - Updates and Alerts



On August 28, 2019, Tropical Storm Dorian has strengthened to a category 1 hurricane and began passing through Puerto Rico. Forecasts are predicting that the storm will develop to a category 3 hurricane as it makes its way to the southeastern coast of the United States by the end of the week. The storm has the potential to affect some of our member institutions.

In preparation for this storm, all students and coordinators at the University of Puerto Rico - Mayagüez and Río Piedras are in touch with ISEP staff, and they have taken necessary precautions to ensure their safety during the storm. As the storm makes its way to the U.S., ISEP will be closely monitoring its path and checking in with students and members as needed.

Universidad de Puerto Rico - Mayagüez

Universidad de Puerto Rico - Río Piedras



To prepare for the impending storm, we urge all students to:

  1. Respond immediately to any calls or “check-in” emails from ISEP, as it is an essential part of our emergency and safety protocols to make sure you are safe and accounted for.
  2. Contact your parents or emergency contact to let them know you are safe and about your planned whereabouts during the storm to prevent extra worry.
  3. Sign up for storm alerts to stay abreast and vigilant as the situation unfolds. Please look to your host institution, embassy, local law enforcement and media for additional updates.
  4. Carry a fully charged cell phone with you at all times, in the case of an emergency or a power outage.
  5. Contact your host ISEP Coordinator if you have any problems or follow-up questions.

Additionally, after the storm, if communication means are functioning, please immediately confirm your safety with your parents or emergency contacts, host ISEP Coordinator and assigned ISEP Student Services Cooridinator. We understand there may be power outages.

Students can let us know about their safety in the following ways:

  1. Respond to the ISEP check-in email with the word “safe”
  2. Emergency Phone: 1-301-681-2388
  3. Social Media: Check-in on Facebook on our closed Facebook Group with the words “safe”

Throughout the storm, we will be closely monitoring the situation and will be in touch with both you and your home ISEP Coordinator to relay back any information regarding your safety.

We will also provide any new updates on the storm and actions required. We recommend checking this page and #ISEPAlerts on the @ISEPStudyAbroad Twitter feed for real-time updates.