U of Vermont erects tents to help ‘de-densify’ campus

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — The University of Vermont is hoping to give students more room to study when they return to campus for the spring session.

The Burlington school has erected two large tents at different locations that can be used, as UVM spokesman Enrique Corredera puts it, for “appropriately distanced auxiliary space, including for studying.”

The Burlington Free Press reports both of the steel-framed structures have solid floors, are fully lit and will be fully wired for studying. They also will be warmed with industrial-sized propane heaters.

The tents will be ready for the spring semester, which begins Feb. 1.

Corredera says the tents will be taken down when the weather warms in the spring.

On Wednesday, the Vermont Health Department reported 118 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19, bringing the statewide total since the pandemic began to just under 9,370.

There are currently 48 people hospitalized with COVID-19, including eight in intensive care.

The state is reporting a total of 158 deaths.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Vermont has risen over the past two weeks from 84.86 new cases per day on Dec. 29 to 172.71 new cases per day on Jan. 12.