Campus Alert Archive
App State

First Closure in University History: App State's Five Snow Days That Boone Will Never Forget

NCwinter stormemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

From March 13-19, 1993, the 1993 Storm of the Century buried Boone, North Carolina under 2-3 feet of snow and forced Appalachian State University to close for five consecutive days -- the first campus closure in the institution's history -- stranding approximately 160 students on campus over spring break. Helicopters were required to airlift supplies into the town. North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt visited Boone personally as the university absorbed approximately $30,000 in direct costs.

Alerts
3
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Appalachian State University
Public Masters · NC
Local WATA radio broadcast and RA in-person notification (pre-mass-notification era)
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

3 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTother
Approximate reconstruction356 chars
Appalachian State University classes are canceled effective immediately due to severe winter storm conditions. Students, faculty, and staff who are able to leave Boone should do so before road conditions deteriorate further. Students remaining on campus should report to their residence halls and remain there. WATA 1450 AM will provide continuous updates.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

The blizzard began to affect the Boone area on March 12-13; Boone sits at approximately 3,300 feet elevation in the Blue Ridge Mountains, making it especially vulnerable to snowfall far exceeding that of lower-elevation North Carolina
In 1993, Appalachian State had no electronic mass-notification system; closure announcements were communicated via local AM radio (WATA 1450), television broadcasts, RA room-by-room notifications, and posted signs
Most students had left Boone for spring break before the storm arrived; an estimated 160 students were stranded on campus when the roads became impassable
UPDATEother
Approximate reconstruction361 chars
Appalachian State University remains closed. Roads into and out of Boone are closed. Do not attempt to travel. Students on campus are being sheltered and fed in the residence halls. Governor Hunt has declared a state of emergency for Watauga County. Helicopter supply drops are underway for residents unable to reach food and supplies. Monitor WATA for updates.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

The storm brought 24 consecutive hours of temperatures below 11 degrees Fahrenheit to Boone and deposited 2-3 feet of snow, making roads impassable for days
North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt visited Boone during the recovery; helicopters were deployed to deliver supplies to isolated residents
The closure cost the university approximately $30,000 (approximately $64,000 in 2023 dollars) for heating, staffing, and food service for stranded students
ALL CLEARother
Approximate reconstruction334 chars
Road conditions have improved sufficiently to reopen the Appalachian State University campus. Classes will resume on schedule. Students who left for spring break may return to campus. The university thanks students, faculty, and staff for their patience during the worst winter storm in recent memory. Normal operations resume Monday.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Campus reopened after five consecutive closure days -- the longest weather closure in the university's recorded history up to that point
The Blizzard of '93 (Storm of the Century) is documented to have produced more than 30 inches of snow in Boone and set the standard by which all subsequent western North Carolina winter events have been compared
The closure set precedent for Appalachian State's subsequent snow-closure communications and helped establish the local radio network as the definitive campus emergency channel
Context

Background

The 1993 Storm of the Century, which formed over the Gulf of Mexico on March 12, 1993, and swept up the Eastern Seaboard as far north as Canada, produced some of its most extreme effects in the Southern Appalachians. Boone, North Carolina, at 3,300 feet in the Blue Ridge Mountains, received 2-3 feet of snow and experienced 24 consecutive hours of temperatures below 11 degrees Fahrenheit. As documented in The Appalachian student newspaper's retrospective and the Watauga Democrat's 30th anniversary coverage, Appalachian State University closed for five consecutive class days -- the first such closure in the institution's history, as cited by The Appalachian's then-news editor Suzi Landis. Approximately 160 students who had not left for spring break were stranded on campus and sheltered and fed by skeleton staff who remained. The roads into Boone were impassable for days, and Governor Jim Hunt visited the town as helicopter supply drops delivered food and necessities to isolated residents. The closure cost the university approximately $30,000. In 1993, Appalachian State had no SMS alert, no email mass-notification, and no online bulletin board; WATA 1450 AM radio and RA in-person notification were the institution's primary emergency communication tools. The event holds particular significance in the archive because it represents one of the documented cases of a first-ever campus weather closure, requiring novel improvisation of emergency communication procedures without a playbook.
Analysis

Key Findings

The 1993 Storm of the Century forced Appalachian State University to close for five consecutive days, the first such closure in the institution's history
Approximately 160 students were stranded on campus over spring break and sheltered by staff in residence halls
Roads into Boone were impassable for days; North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt visited the area and helicopter supply drops were required
Campus emergency communication relied entirely on WATA 1450 AM radio and RA in-person notification, with no electronic mass-notification system
Outcome
No fatalities or serious injuries on campus. Approximately 160 students remained in campus residence halls during the closure and were sheltered and fed by university staff who had stayed behind. Campus operations resumed March 19-20, 1993. The five-day closure remained the longest weather-related class cancellation in the university's recorded history until Hurricane Helene in 2024.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Source
    1993 Storm of the Century - Wikipedia
    en.wikipedia.org
  2. Student Paper
    'Boone is Closed': Revisiting the Blizzard of '93 - The Appalachian
    theappalachianonline.com
  3. News
    From the Archives: A Look Back 30 Years Later at the Storm of the Century - Watauga Democrat
    wataugademocrat.com
  4. Source
    Appalachian State Weather Closings History - WataugaOnline.com
    wataugaonline.com
Tags
winter-stormblizzardcampus-closurenorth-carolinaappalachianhistoric1993first-in-historystorm-of-centuryradio-notificationspring-break
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion