After the Virginia Tech shootings in April, universities nationwide rushed to create special emergency plans in case of crisis. The University of Oregon, however, already had one.
“Virginia Tech focused the nation’s attention on emergency planning, but the UO was already prepared,” said Phil Weiler, senior director for Public and Media Relations at the University.
The plan was drawn out about three years ago when University officials realized that wind storms and ice storms were a constant threat that would require response from outside the campus. They developed an “incident command system” that would allow everyone involved in the procedure to communicate with each other.
The concept of the system, said Weiler, originated in the National Fire Service.
“There was a really bad fire in Southern California years ago, and it required all sorts of fire jurisdictions to fight it,” he said. “The problem was, none of the jurisdictions knew how to talk to each other because they all used different codes and nomenclature. They realized they needed a common approach.”
Various bureaus of the University and the City of Eugene developed the agreed-upon roles and codes that would allow them to respond to anything from natural disasters to chemical spills. More recently, all parties involved began to regularly practice the emergency procedures in response to the Virginia Tech shootings in April.
“We were a little bit ahead of the game and we had a good plan in place, but we hadn’t practiced it,” said Weiler. “While we’ve gotten away with that in the past, we still should be prepared.”
To further fine-tune emergency procedures, the University hired Andre Le Duc to be its official emergency manager and engaged the services of the Oregon Partnership for Disaster Resilience, an organization on campus. Le Duc and the partnership began developing specialized plans, called “annexes,” over the summer.
“The annexes they’re working on include things like how to deal with volunteers, or what to do with donations that can’t be used,” said Weiler.
Gregoor Passchier, a graduate student working with the partnership, said the new, more organized version of the University’s emergency plan will ensure safety on campus.
“Should a large emergency occur that would require coordinated response, such as Virginia Tech, we feel the work we’ve done really enhances [the plan],” said Passchier.
A Sept. 12 press release listed emergency notification methods planned in case of crisis. Procedures include mass e-mail messages to the entire University, mass voicemails to all campus telephones, alerts on the University’s Web site and radio station, and local television broadcasts. The University is also considering installing a siren or public address system.
Many universities have created a cell phone database so students can receive text messages announcing emergencies. New Department of Public Safety Director Kevin Williams doesn’t plan to follow their lead.
“One of the things these universities are finding is that [mass text messages] are expensive and cumbersome,” he said. “Each student has to sign up and remember a PIN number, which they have difficulty doing.”
Another flaw in the text message plan, he pointed out, is that contact lists quickly become outdated.
“Think about how many people change telephone numbers in a year,” he said. “A database of more than 24,000 people is very difficult to update.”
DPS has also established a partnership with the Eugene Police Department for incidents that require a less complex response.
“We will have a team from EPD assigned to the University, and they will handle things that require police response – a fire alarm going off, for example, or someone getting stuck in the elevator,” said Williams.
“Our job is to keep students safe,” he said. “Our focus should be on students.”