Amidst the COVID-19 crisis, UCD has closed its doors for teaching… for the most part. There are still plenty of buildings open. I took a stroll around Belfield campus to see what’s going on at the moment. Unsurprisingly, there’s not much. It’s like a ghost town. If you do decide to venture onto campus for whatever reason, be sure to familiarise yourself with the most updated information from UCD websites and social media accounts. The University is monitoring the COVID-19 situation very closely and restrictions are changing almost daily on campus.
Check out some scenes from Belfield, as taken by Editor Conor Capplis:
The James Joyce Library remains closed until Wednesday March 18th. All library fines will be waived during the period of university closure. Students are being encouraged to regularly check UCD Library’s website and social media channels for updates.
Quite possibly the busiest place in Ireland right now. The UCD National Virus Reference Laboratory is leading the efforts to tackle and contain the COVID-19 Virus in Ireland.
The University Club and O’Reilly Hall will remain shut until March 30th.
A seagull taking advantage of the empty Belfield campus.
The O’Brien Centre for Science remains open and is operating regular opening hours (currently out of term hours). Building opening hours are subject to change during the developing COVID-19 crisis.
A Rare Sight: Quiet Belfield campus sees a small handful of students continuing to study.
The SU Shop under the James Joyce Library is closed until the reopening of the university.
Very few students and staff can be seen walking around Belfield.
Construction work continues on the Newman Building.
The Tierney Building currently houses much of UCD management, administration and alumni offices. Along with the offices of the President on the third floor, the building is eerily quiet as staff have almost entirely vacated the building.
The Newman Building sees the regular opening of BlueBird Café, yet the halls of the Arts Block remain empty.
Few passers by can be seen walking along the Library concourse, many of whom are international students.
The near empty O’Brien Centre for Science overlooks the main UCD lake. Thankfully, the swans seem largely unaffected by the university closure.
The James Joyce Library houses thousands of books, students will have to wait until Wednesday, March 18th to access them.
The open floor offices in the Tierney Building are usually busy with staff. Now it looks like staff almost disappeared.
The Student Centre is partially open for use of the pharmacy. UCD sport, fitness and pool facilities are closed from 17.30 on Sunday 15th March until the 29th March. For up to date information on what’s open on campus, be sure to regularly check the UCD website. Here’s a handy link to keep saved: https://www.ucd.ie/about-ucd/about/covid-19specialarrangementsfaqs/?fbclid=IwAR3azpiTITU13vj2bTN3hsSiAFs_OcKor8jupSID5AHxXchSIHxnhvBKb3I
More updates will follow over the next few weeks…
Conor Capplis – Editor
