KINGSTON, R.I. — September 1, 2010 — While forecasters expect Rhode Island to escape the full force of Hurricane Earl, officials at the University of Rhode Island are monitoring and preparing for the storm.

Several precautionary steps are being taken, including: filling fuel tanks of university vehicles and moving them to open areas away from trees, securing construction sites, and testing generators.

At this point, freshmen move-in, Saturday, Sept. 4 and Sunday, Sept. 5, will be held as scheduled. If the storm track results in changes to the move-in schedule or other University activities, announcements will be made by 1 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2 on 401-874-SNOW and 401-874-1000 and the URI homepage, uri.edu. Please do not call Campus Police for updates on the approaching storm.

The Office Of Housing and Residential Life has sent an email directly to its students stating that move-in will be held as scheduled, but to watch for updates on the URI homepage and the URI Housing and Residential Life homepage.

Since forecasters are predicting only rain and wind on Friday, Sept. 3, the University will be fully open for business. However, since the hurricane season is now in full swing, Public Safety Director Robert Drapeau recommends that employees keep their vehicles’ fuel tanks full, and have the following items on hand: flashlight, change of clothes and foul weather gear.

Follow the storm track and read more about hurricane preparedness from the RI Emergency Management Agency.