Communications is the key in any emergency

The traumatic shootings at Virginia Tech last April prodded campus officials in universities across the U.S. to beef up their campus security and safety measures.

As students return to school for the fall semester, they will undergo safety seminars to be briefed on the new warning systems that have been put in place for their protection.

One of the most significant safety measures commonly adopted among various universities is the planned use of text messaging notification systems to alert everyone on campus about emergencies and crises.

University officials used to rely on messages sent by e-mail or posted in the school Web sites or on recorded messages on a special telephone number. But these were not effective because it was necessary for students and staff to call the school number or go to a computer to check the school Web site or their e-mail.

Officials recognized that the one thing students and most everybody else have with them all the time is their cell phones. They realized that this would be the best channel to push information down to campus constituents at the time they need it. Their new text messaging systems will be the fastest way to bring information to the ultra-connected students of today, bringing news that can range from canceled classes to a campus crisis.

In addition to the use of communications technology, many schools have also required their campus police to undergo training to handle emergency situations. New equipment has been purchased, including assault rifles and body armor. Intensive training exercises on emergency response, particularly those with shooters in a school building, have been conducted with regular police officers.

There are also plans to send out biweekly reports summarizing incidents of campus crime, to inform all campus constituents, to do a continuing review of university emergency response plans and to conduct regular security audits of the campuses.

In addition to purchasing cell phone tracking systems, some universities have bought an emergency communications van that will be deployed as a mobile command post when campus-wide emergencies arise.

The Virginia Tech shootings, which resulted in 33 persons dead, had raised serious doubts about the emergency response capability of colleges to handle such incidents. The report from the investigating panel found that Virginia Tech officials took too much time to warn students and faculty about the emergency.

Communications is the key in any emergency. So the primary focus has been on upgrading the communications capability in various campuses.