Nescol campus in Aberdeen closed again due to weather damage as road closures cause lengthy queues

All staff and students were evacuated from the building yesterday amid high winds.

By Ellie Milne and Cameron Roy

March 22 2023, 5:48 pm

Nescol remains closed after its roof was damaged yesterday. Image: by Scott Baxter/ DC Thomson.

Nescol’s Aberdeen campus will not open again today or tomorrow due to weather damage caused by yesterday’s strong winds.

Nearby roads have also been closed which has caused lengthy queues in the area.

It is part of a safety precaution after the wind caused damage to the roof of the building.

However, concerns have been raised that students will be missing out on valuable class time with approaching assessments.

Officers have closed Gallowgate and surrounding streets due to the damaged roof at Nescol. Image: Denny Andonova/DC Thomson.

Nescol released a statement on Thursday saying the closure would remain in place on Friday as they called in “specialist contractors” to work on the roof.

On Wednesday, Nescol staff shared a message online stating: “City campus will close immediately as a precaution to ensure the health and safety of students, staff, visitors and the public.

“All those on campus are asked to make an orderly exit from the Loch Street doors and follow the advice of staff.

Instead, Nescol has asked students timetabled to be on campus to check Blackboard, where online learning will be made available “where possible”.

In February, the campus was previously evacuated due to roof damage caused by Storm Otto. Image: Chris Sumner/ DC Thomson.

The city centre college campus was also closed in February when Storm Otto caused damage to the building’s roof.

Nescol has been contacted for further comment about the steps it is taking to resolve the reoccurring problem.

Unexpected road closures cause traffic queues

The road closures have been severely impacting motorists amidst other roadworks across the city.

Police closed a number of roads in the area on Wednesday to keep motorists and pedestrians safe. They remained closed to allow an assessment of the roof – reopening on Thursday evening.

Gallowgate was cordoned off between its junction with the Mounthooly roundabout and Seamount Road.

Tailbacks at mounthooly roundabout due to the road closures. Image: Scott Baxter/ DC Thomson.

Spring Garden, between Gallowgate and George Street, and Loch Street, between St Andrew Street and Spring Garden, were also closed.

Long tailbacks were photographed at Mounthooly roundabout in the morning and afternoon.

Motorists had been trying to find an alternative route to the city centre.

The unexpected road closure has caused delays for drivers. Image: Scott Baxter/ DC Thomson.

A yellow weather warning for wind, issued by the Met Office, was in place from 4am until 6pm yesterday and covered large parts of the Highlands and Islands, Moray, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.

Strong gusts have been battering parts of the region, bringing down a number of trees and causing travel disruption.