With the recent devastation at Union University during a tornado, some students may be more concerned about their personal safety during natural disasters, as well as questioning the safety procedures The University has in place.
Director of Public Safety Bruce Harber said The University is doing as much as possible to insure student and faculty safety in the event of a natural disaster, including hiring an emergency preparedness coordinator within the next month or so. This individual would be responsible for training students and faculty in the best way to respond to a disaster, as well as assessing safety procedures by The University.
The University is also in the planning stages of creating an academic minor in disaster preparedness.
Harber said there are a couple of ways to alert students in the wake of a disaster.
"We can issue a text alert and activate the sirens," Harber said.
He said because earthquakes are unpredictable, tornadoes give The University more time to prepare.
"With a tornado, we're going to have a few minutes of warning," Harber said.
Harber said the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) is a program that may go hand in hand with the hiring of an emergency preparedness coordinator. CERT is a program that is specifically designed for all members of The University community interested in being more aware of actions they can take to secure their safety on campus.
The two-day class not only allows participants to prepare themselves, but their friends and family as well. The program prepares individuals to react in a disaster as a team, so everyone involved will have a helping hand. According to Master of Public Administration Graduate Coordinator Joy Clay, the program is very insightful. More information and details about CERT can be found on The University's website at http://cjustice.memphis.edu/wpitts/CERT.pdf.
Clay said The University can supply the support that students and faculty need on campus, but individuals have to help themselves as well.
"You can't expect help to come immediately - you have to help yourself," Clay said.
Clay said she is in the beginning stages of creating a minor for students interested in becoming more knowledgeable about natural disasters and how to better react to them.
"We're at the conceptual stage," Clay said. "It would be a blend of science and management."
Freshman nursing major Thomas Mathis said he likes the idea of such a minor. Though he lives off campus, Mathis said he trusts The University with his safety.
"While I'm here, I feel very safe," Mathis said.
Senior biology major Kimberly Terry said she supports The University's ideas of a minor in natural-disaster response and hiring an emergency preparedness coordinator, but if a disaster occurs, students may not recall safety tips.
"I think a lot of people would think, 'I need to get home'," Terry said.
She said if students are outside of a building, they might try to make it home, rather than take cover on campus.
Though Terry said she is concerned about the campus's older buildings, she feels safe on campus. She said The University's plan to hire an emergency preparedness coordinator is a step toward progress in insuring students' safety.
Arch Johnston, director of the Center for Earthquake Research and Information, said The University has several plans to help faculty and students deal with an earthquake.
"We have a program called Disaster Resistant University Project," said Johnston, who is also a professor of geophysics.
He said because CERI has taken measures to qualify for financial assistance.
"That makes us eligible for grants for non-structural safety features, like having hazardous material more securely stored, like having the critical machinery more bolted down," Johnston said.
He said these grants will aid The University if a disaster occurs. Associate Director Christine Powell of CERI said staying in contact with University officials helps keep The University prepared for disaster.
"We really communicate well with the appropriate people, administrators and people who are involved with building codes." Powell said.
But there is only so much CERI and University officials can do - the rest depends on students. Harber suggests a few tips, such as having a limited number of heavy objects in dorm rooms and keeping a stockpile of water.
Harber said he recommends that students and faculty use the tips for natural disasters which can be found on an emergency procedures poster from 2005. Harber's poster includes possible life-saving suggestions during tornados, earthquakes and even power outages.
During an earthquake, the poster says to drop, cover and hold under a table until the shaking stops. Once the shaking has ended, exit the room and evacuate the building, and if on campus, report your status to your professor before leaving, so that rescue workers will know who might be trapped inside the building.
During a tornado, Harber's poster suggests that students who are inside a building stay away from any glass and get to the lowest level of that building through its staircase. For students outside during a tornado, it is important to stay low to the ground, preferably in a ditch. Stay away from trees and power lines and if possible, get into a building.
Harber's tips do not end with tornados and earthquakes. The poster also consists of tips when one is involved with a suspicious individual or even during a fire.
Harber, Johnston, Clay and Powell suggest that students do as much as they can to secure their safety because these officials are taking the necessary measures to assure The University is doing the same.
