Planned power outage on residential campus on Saturday ...
This page will be updated as there is more information to share about the planned power outage.
UC Santa Cruz will experience a planned power outage Saturday, September 7, from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. The outage will impact most of the residential campus, including all ten colleges and many upper campus facilities. Power will not be affected at Family Student Housing, Ranch View Terrace, Cardiff Terrace, Hagar Court, Lower Campus, Arboretum, Cowell Hay Barn, Westside Research Park, Coastal Science Campus, and Scotts Valley Center. Campus electricians need to conduct important maintenance and repairs to our primary electrical substation that were identified during the last planned outage in late February 2024. These maintenance and repair activities will require an estimated 6–8 hour power outage affecting the residential campus.
Additional information will be shared as soon as it is available, and ongoing updates will be posted online.
Preparing for the power outage
In advance of this planned power outage, we encourage everyone to fully charge their electronic devices, including computers, tablets, cell phones, scanners, and backup chargers. Learn more about how to prepare for power outages.
Buildings expected to have full or partial power during the outage During the planned power outage, the Cogeneration plant will remain online and generators will provide power backup for some, but not all, campus facilities. Review the list below for buildings that we expect will be fully or partially powered by either the Cogeneration plant or generators. The following is a partial list of buildings that will be fully or partially powered during the outage:
Jack Baskin Engineering Building Communication Building Cowell Student Health Center Earth & Marine Science Building Cogen Plant Fire Station Natural Science 2 Interdisciplinary Science Building Center for Adaptive Optics Sinsheimer Labs Science and Engineering Library Thimann LabsDining halls providing service
College Nine/John R. Lewis Dining Hall will be open regular Saturday hours for breakfast, lunch, and dinner:
Breakfast: 7 - 9 a.m. Lunch: 11:30 a.m - 1:30 p.m. Dinner: 5 - 7 p.m.Transportation and Parking Services
Santa Cruz METRO buses will continue to run regular routes through campus and TAPS will continue to provide regular service.
Lighting levels in campus parking facilities may be impacted. Additionally, with a loss of power, the elevators in Core West Parking Structure will return to Level One, open their doors and remain in that state until power is restored.
Researchers and labs with active projects
It is critical to review what equipment and resources you may need in the event of an outage. Develop mitigation plans to either safely pause or continue activities during the outage. Researchers are encouraged to review the Utility Failure webpage and undertake action items as appropriate.
Campus Network, telephones, WiFi, computer labs
Disruptions to the campus network, telephones, WiFi, and computer labs may occur. While campus generators will provide backup power to some areas, many IT services may be impacted by the outage. Please be prepared for potential interruptions. You may want to work/study from an alternative location–dining hall, McHenry or Science and Engineering libraries, or off campus. For the latest updates, visit the ITS Outage & Alerts web page.
