The URV suspends activity in Vilafranca and Baix Penedès: 240 students affected

The URV suspends university activity at the Vilafranca del Penedès and Baix Penedès campuses this Wednesday, September 9. The measure affects 240 Nursing students and avoids travel during the INUNCAT alert.

The decision comes due to the forecast of heavy rains announced by Civil Protection. While the alert remains, staff will work from home whenever possible: classrooms close, but work does not disappear by magic.

What is suspended at the URV campuses?

Which students are affected?

The suspension affects the in-person activity of 240 students. They are second-, third-, and fourth-year Nursing students from the Vilafranca del Penedès and Baix Penedès campuses.

The measure therefore includes students from three years of the same degree and from two university campuses. The figure allows understanding the specific scope of the decision: this is not an incident limited to a class or a specific activity, but a suspension that affects a significant part of the planned academic day.

Also affected are first-year Early Childhood Education students who had scheduled welcome activities at the Baix Penedès campus this Wednesday. This welcome activity will not be held in person while the alert situation remains.

• Vilafranca del Penedès campus: second-, third- and fourth-year Nursing students.
• Baix Penedès campus: second-, third- and fourth-year Nursing students.
• Early Childhood Education: the scheduled welcome for first-year students at the Baix Penedès campus is affected.

Why is avoiding travel also requested?

The URV asks to avoid travel from the Baix Penedès and Alt Penedès regions, as well as trips to these two regions. The reason is straightforward: the forecast of heavy rains has activated the INUNCAT alert and Civil Protection recommends extreme caution.

This indication is relevant for students, faculty, and staff who usually move between campuses. The suspension of in-person activities not only modifies activities inside university buildings, but also reduces trips that would have taken place during a day with meteorological risk.

According to the Rovira i Virgili University, the suspension was adopted following the activation of the INUNCAT alert due to the forecast of heavy rains this Wednesday. The priority is clear: not to turn an academic day into a collection of unnecessary journeys in the rain.

How will activities operate while the alert lasts?

Will staff have to go to the campus?

Work activity will be carried out through teleworking whenever possible. This instruction applies to the affected campuses while the alert is in force.

This approach allows maintaining work tasks without requiring physical presence at the Vilafranca del Penedès and Baix Penedès buildings. The criterion is not that all activity automatically switches to remote work, but that teleworking is used when viable.

The same instruction applies to people residing in Baix Penedès or Alt Penedès who would need to travel to other URV centers. In these cases, they will also work from home whenever possible.

What should the rest of the university community do?

The rest of the university community must follow the alerts issued by Civil Protection through the @emergenciescat account and take extreme precautions given the forecast of heavy rains.

This includes staying attentive to official updates and evaluating travel before leaving. The available information does not set a duration beyond the period during which the alert remains, so any changes will depend on the evolution of the situation and Civil Protection’s instructions.

For affected students, the practical message is simple: they must not attend in person at the indicated campuses this Wednesday. For staff, the reference is telework when applicable. And for everyone else, it is necessary to consult the alerts and not act as if the meteorological forecast were just a decorative nuisance.

• Check Civil Protection alerts, especially through @emergenciescat.
• Avoid travel from and to Baix Penedès and Alt Penedès.
• Work remotely if the work activity allows it.
• Take extreme precautions in view of the forecast heavy rains.

The URV’s decision combines two measures in a single instruction: it suspends in-person activity at the affected campuses and reduces movements associated with the university day. For the 240 Nursing students and Early Childhood Education students with planned welcome activities, the change is immediate; for staff, telework keeps open the possibility to continue activity without exposing themselves to unnecessary travel.

The suspension affects Vilafranca del Penedès and Baix Penedès, travel is discouraged, and teleworking is applied whenever possible. The key now is to follow the evolution of the INUNCAT alert and Civil Protection’s instructions before resuming any in-person activity.

Article source: Rovira i Virgili University