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April 19, 2007

Pitt's emergency plans & what you need to know

The tragedy at Virginia Tech this week has prompted questions nationwide about campus security and emergency communication in general.

In the aftermath, Pitt Police Chief Timothy R. Delaney has been fielding his share of inquiries from the media, employees and worried parents.

The incident at Virginia Tech has prompted numerous “what-ifs” and worried concerns about whether such a tragedy could occur at Pitt.

Some want to know whether on-campus meetings will be scheduled to address security. Others are seeking information on current policy. Still others need reassurance to quell their fears of copycat incidents.

“The great thing is that they’re talking about it,” said Delaney, who emphasized that Pitt police train constantly in conjunction with city and other police forces for a variety of emergencies.

He said he has responded individually to several emails from parents and employees and has asked the University to post information online in the interest of covering issues that are on the minds of many of those who have sought him out for answers.

An emergency preparedness icon is located on Pitt’s home-page at www.pitt.edu with links to University and external sources of information. Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Robert Hill said that the site is being updated to respond to current concerns.

While Pitt has clear emergency response policies in place for fires, hazardous materials spills, injuries and other emergencies, the need to invoke them, fortunately, is rare. Faculty and staff may be aware of emergency procedures in general, but not know exactly what to do, or how they can expect to be contacted when an emergency suddenly arises.

Emergency procedures for all Pitt campuses are posted online on the Department of Environmental Health and Safety web site at www.ehs.pitt.edu. Links to preparedness and other safety information also is available on the Pitt police web site at www.pitt.edu/~police.

Copies of Pitt’s general emergency response guides are available in paper form in each responsibility center. Copies may be obtained from EHS by calling 412/624-9505.

According to EHS director Jay Frerotte, Pitt has a number of communication mechanisms in place to alert employees to emergency situations.

Pitt has the capability of mass emailing all Pitt accounts in the event of an emergency, Frerotte said. “The decision to do that would have to come from the senior administration,” he said. EHS, the campus police department and city emergency response departments would play advisory roles in that decision, he added.

Delaney noted that mass email is reserved for extreme situations, the most recent following the 9-11 terrorist attacks.

Frerotte said administrators also could use the campus phone system’s Audix voice-mail messaging service to alert faculty and staff in case of an emergency.

In addition, Pitt has established a campus-wide telephone communication tree, Frerotte said. “I think there are about 17 pages of names and numbers of unit leaders, deans, department heads, administrators and so forth, and they should have a system in place to alert their faculty and staff,” he said.

It is up to the unit to determine the information chain, Frerotte said. “The phone tree also gives us some flexibility, in the event an emergency affects only a portion of the campus that would need to be alerted,” he added.

Delaney said Pitt’s Executive Vice Chancellor Jerome Cochran, who doubles as the University’s emergency executive, is his go-to person when emergencies occur. Delaney said he explains the situation to Cochran based on the information he has and whether the situation is contained or uncontained, leaving it to Cochran to contact the chancellor and provost to determine a response. “It’s an open forum” among those at the top of the decision-making chain, Delaney said, adding that he may be asked for additional input depending on the nature of the emergency.

Fire alarms may be the most familiar emergency warning. However, Frerotte said, “It’s important to note that a building’s fire alarm system doubles as an evacuation warning for all emergencies, not just fire emergencies.

“People should always evacuate when that alarm goes off and wait for emergency personnel to clear them for re-entry,” he said.

“Three things happen when that alarm is pulled: It alerts the campus police, and there is an automatic transfer system that alerts city emergency personnel. It also alerts everyone in the building of an emergency.”

Fire alarm systems also have a microphone from which emergency personnel can make announcements building-wide, Delaney said.

While fire emergencies require building evacuation, the Pitt police web site advises that in other situations not involving danger to a building, it is preferable for a building’s occupants to stay put (called shelter in place.)

“What would happen here if we stirred 90 buildings and had these thousands of people moving at one time?” Delaney said. Instead, to avoid the gridlock that could prevent the people closest to an emergency situation from escaping the danger, people would be moved in waves from the epicenter of the incident out. For instance, Delaney said, if there were an incident at Trees Hall, he wouldn’t call the Cathedral of Learning to evacuate immediately. “We don’t want to get people downloading onto the streets and conflicting with those who are closer,” he said.

Pitt has held a number of in-place sheltering drills in the Cathedral of Learning, Frerotte said.

During the drills, Pitt safety personnel go floor by floor and direct people to assemble at four or five designated areas in the Cathedral, where the safety personnel can communicate with a large group.

“We used the same areas to assemble for each drill so that the groups will become used to where they should report if they are notified by the public address system, for example. It’s also a way to account for everyone,” Frerotte said.

Safety personnel could update each group on the nature of the emergency and, depending on the timing of response to correct an emergency situation, could advise the group on whether and when they should evacuate.

Delaney said a shelter-in-place order in the Cathedral of Learning can be completed in 15-20 minutes by moving people floor to floor in waves, starting at the epicenter of the emergency.

“It would be highly unusual to do, but there is a plan and it’s been done,” Delaney said. In addition to directing people to the lower floors, he said police personnel would be stationed in the halls or stairways to answer questions and provide accurate information.

“Making the announcement is one thing. Answering questions is another,” he said.

In addition to holding regular fire drills, Pitt is subject to a city-mandated evacuation ordinance, which requires evacuation run-throughs in each high-rise of seven stories or more, Frerotte said. The Pittsburgh campus has 20-plus such buildings, more than half of them residence halls. “We run drills a minimum of once a year in the high-rises and twice a year in the residence halls,” he said.

Delaney noted that it’s impossible to simply “lock down” the University in an instant, although he is able to override timer-activated automatic locking systems that are in place on newer Pitt buildings. For about 80 percent of Pitt’s Oakland buildings, with the click of a mouse in the communication room at the Public Safety Building Delaney can choose a building and select an emergency shutoff function for individual or all doors — making the exterior doors automatically lock. People still can get out, Delaney said, but the doors are locked so outsiders cannot get in.

Delaney said the police rely on observant people to call if they see suspicious activity.

He advised members of the Pitt community to dial 412/624-2121 to report emergencies.

In addition, on campus the police may be reached by dialing 811 to report fire or safety emergencies.

—Kimberly K. Barlow and Peter Hart


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