UC Davis graduation abruptly halted mid-ceremony due to extreme heat, people hospitalized

UC Davis’ graduation ceremony was abruptly cut short Friday morning after extreme heat left six people hospitalized and over half of the students present did not get to walk across the stage.

At 10:56 a.m., UC Davis posted a message on Twitter that those who had already crossed the stage were encouraged to leave with their families due to “extremely hot” temperatures.

Shortly thereafter, an announcement was made in the stadium telling all graduates to clear the field, and announcing that the ceremony would be halting.

“We believe we have reached dangerous conditions,” the announcement, which can be heard in the graduation’s live stream, said. “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.”

The temperature Friday morning in Davis was in the mid-90s, with an excessive heat warning in effect. According to UC Davis spokeswoman Julia Ann Easley, the campus received 35 calls for heat-related medical aid and six of those people were transported to local hospitals.

The announcement was made about three hours into the ceremony, and just over one hour after graduates began to cross the stage. Of the approximately 2,300 students attending the ceremony, about 1,440 were unable to walk, according to UC Davis spokeswoman Kat Kerlin.

Friday’s ceremony was the first large-scale in-person graduation ceremony since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Commencement ceremonies in 2021 were conducted in smaller pods of 400 students.

For the first time this year, UC Davis is holding three graduation ceremonies for undergraduates — divided based on their majors — rather than the previous practice of seven graduation ceremonies based on school. When the university announced the change in 2020, it said that the new format would require the use of outdoor venues such as its football stadium.

Friday marked the first of the three ceremonies. Another is planned for Saturday morning, and the third for Sunday. Kerlin said that “plans for the rest of the weekend are still being discussed,” in light of Friday’s events.

In a news release Friday afternoon, the university invited students who did not get a chance to walk to attend a separate ceremony Sunday with their families.

“We deeply regret that some students did not get a chance to walk across the stage,” the statement said. “We appreciate your understanding and know this has been frustrating.”

Numerous students and attendees took to social media to express frustration about the organization and cancellation of the ceremony.

UC Davis student Tiara Abraham sang the national anthem in Friday’s ceremony. She arrived at the campus about 7 a.m. to avoid the crowds, and she said it was already hot. The ceremony was scheduled to begin at 8 a.m..

“I knew it was going to be really hot,” Abraham told The Sacramento Bee. “It was a huge class, I knew it was going to take longer than two hours.”

She said the graduates in their cap and gowns started walking into the stadium about 8:15 a.m. to take their seats. Abraham took the stage about 9:30 a.m. to start singing the national anthem. She said she had been underneath a tent backstage, and had some shade while she was singing.

For students waiting to graduate, they were seated on chairs in the middle of the stadium. They had no shade or any protection from the heat.

Abraham is graduating from UC Davis during the Saturday ceremony, which is scheduled at the same time of day with temperatures similarly forecast in the mid-90s. She also will perform the national anthem at the start of Saturday’s ceremony

Abraham is from Sacramento and graduating at the age of 16 with a bachelor’s degree in music vocal performance and heading to graduate school at Indiana University to earn a master’s degree. Her mother and brother are UC Davis alumni, so the graduation ceremony is important to her.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow,” Abraham said. “If they cancel the ceremony, that would be pretty disappointing. I’ve just been really looking forward to this.”

Mairéad Ryan was among the UC Davis graduating students in Friday’s ceremony. She said students waited in line in nylon gowns under the hot sun for more than two hours before they were told to walk into the stadium.

“They told us when we got to our seats that we could get up and get water or use the bathroom at any time, but lines were so long and they ended up running out of water bottles by the middle of the ceremony,” Ryan wrote in an email to The Bee. “Grads, including myself, were going to the port-a-potties and wiping themselves with water and sitting in front of fans/AC in there.”

Ryan was among the students who got to walk across the stage before the ceremony was stopped. By that point, the students were being told they could leave as soon as they got their diploma.

“I told one of the organizers that I felt like I was going to faint, but they told me ‘just walk across the stage,’” Ryan said.“Everything was so disorganized and there was no excuse for how it was conducted.”

This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 1:44 PM.