DAVIS, Calif. — UC Davis stopped graduation amid the ceremony Friday because of the heat, leaving many graduates without the opportunity to walk across the stage.
On Friday morning at around 10:56, UC Davis posted on Twitter saying those who had crossed the stage at graduation did not need to stay until the end of the ceremony. The university encouraged those who had walked across the stage to go to Hutchinson Field where cold water and air conditioning were located.
As of 1:15 p.m., it was 93 degrees on campus according to the National Weather Service.
"Based on health and public safety concerns due to heat and at the urging of the UC Davis Fire Department, Fire Prevention Services, and Environmental Health and Safety, we had to end today’s commencement ceremony early," the school said in a statement released Friday afternoon.
According to Kat Kerlin with UC Davis, "There were 35 medical calls and 6 people transported to the hospital."
The university invites those who did not get to walk at Friday morning's ceremony to "return with their families for a separate ceremony this Sunday."
"We deeply regret that some students did not get a chance to walk across the stage," the university wrote in a statement. "We appreciate your understanding and know this has been frustrating."
From the UC Davis commencement live stream a speaker said, "Attention UC Davis graduates: On behalf of the fire department and public safety, considering the heat conditions that we are all aware of, unfortunately, we believe it is in the best interest of those graduates on the field to please vacate the field and head towards Hutchinson Field where we have some cooling stations. Again, on behalf of the university, we believe we have reached dangerous conditions. We would like to honor our graduates that have not made it to the field, but in the interest of public safety we ask you to leave the field."
Nathaly Tamayo, a political science major at UC Davis, was one of the many upset students who was supposed to walk across the stage at UC Davis' commencement ceremony on Friday.
"I was really disappointed as I paid so much money to go to college at UC Davis," Tamayo said. "I wish UC Davis would think about what they're taking away from students because for four years we all worked hard, shed so many tears, and had countless restless nights just to be told we could not walk on graduation day."
Monica Mojica, also a political science major at UC Davis, shares Tamayo's disappointment.
"I was really hoping to walk the stage as I am the first person in my family to graduate from college," Mojica said. "This was a really big deal that my family and I had been waiting for for a while, so I was shocked and disappointed."
Mojica's family drove from all throughout the Bay Area to be there for her commencement ceremony. Mojica says she and her family members are unable to attend Sunday's ceremony UC Davis is inviting students who did not get to walk on Friday too.
"My family members all have work on Sunday, so it is hard for them to drive all the way back to Davis from the Bay Area," Mojica said. "I also have work that day so I really cannot attend Sunday's ceremony as I have to be able to pay rent."
Similar to Mojica, Tomay does not plan on attending Sunday's ceremony as of right now.
"I, like many other students, cannot afford to miss work and continue paying to rent hotels just for a ceremony on Sunday that may or may not happen," Tomay said. "I fear that Sunday's ceremony will end up getting canceled just like Friday's commencement ceremony as well."
Watch the moment when a UC Davis speaker makes the announcement:
Many students and their families took to social media to express their frustration with the decision.
UC Davis late on Friday announced that the Saturday morning ceremony will start at 8 a.m. and end at 9 a.m., adding that students will not be walking across the stage.
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TODAY'S HEAT:
Northern California is in the grips of hot and potentially dangerous weather Friday before big changes by the end of the weekend.
The National Weather Service has issued an Excessive Heat Warning for Northern California Valley locations for dangerous heat potential. The warning begins at 11 a.m. and expires at 10 p.m. The temperatures are expected to rise to 102-107 degrees by the afternoon but very warm temperatures will continue into the evening. It's expected to be around 80 degrees until around 10 p.m. Friday night.
Special care should be taken to stay indoors and find air conditioning during the hottest parts of the day. Seniors, pets, and children are especially at risk as well as people unhoused or those working or recreating outdoors.
Saturday will be hot as well with high temperatures above 100 degrees.
Sunday will be a day of rapid changes. Wind will kick up during the day and after days of hot weather created a fire risk for part of Sunday. Valley temperatures will fall and many locations will only warm to the upper 80s.
Sunday afternoon and evening the Sierra and Coastal Range will see a chance of rain and thunderstorms. Rail totals are expected to be light but rain on a weekend in June always catches people off guard so pay special attention if you are doing anything outdoors or camping Sunday.
Heat exhaustion vs. heat stroke
Warning signs for heat exhaustion include the following:
- Dizziness
- Heavy sweating
- Nausea
The symptoms of heat stroke are as follows:
- High body temperature
- Absence of sweating
- Difficulty breathing
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Watch more from ABC10: Excessive Heat Watch in effect across Valley and Sacramento through weekend