Printer-friendly version
PDF version
University of Minnesota students who plan to stay on campus for spring break could be in for a noisy Monday.
The University will be testing a new outdoor emergency public address system at six campus locations during the day.
Terry Cook , director of emergency management, said the tests will assist in system design so that they can gauge how far the sound travels and what size speakers are needed at each location.
After the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, the University came up with a list of communication needs, and Cook said this is the final system to be added.
In an e-mail, University spokesman Daniel Wolter said the University already uses Twitter, Facebook, TXT-U and emergency e-mails, and this is a low-tech, but essential, add-on to what is already in place.
Due to the disruptive nature of the system, it will only be used in extreme situations.
Cook said the system would be used for major emergencies such as chemical spills, shootings or natural disasters.
Cook said although the system has the capabilities to produce a typical outdoor warning siren or alert tone, it will instead be used for voice transmission, either a pre-recorded or live verbal message.
Speakers will be mounted on buildings and on 60-foot tall steel poles that will be painted maroon.
On Monday, there will be a sound truck and speakers will be hoisted 35 feet in the air, and several people will be observing from different distances.
Serving the University of Minnesota Community since 1900
7 Comments
To comment, please login.
At least they are testing
At least they are testing PRIOR to installing the system!
I wonder how much this is expected to cost?
I am curious how much this is
I am curious how much this is costing too. Aren't we under budget cuts?
We should hire illegal aliens
We should hire illegal aliens to run around screaming. We'd save a bundle.
Or
Or they could hire those they're letting go in the Grad School to do that!
Although the U is suffering
Although the U is suffering financially, I'm glad they aren't letting money stand in the way of the students', faculty's, and staff's safety. I'd rather pay a little extra tuition to know that my well being is under consideration.
really?
Safety? If student safety is to be put first, why not just hire more police? Or give everyone a slimming set of body armor (I preferred the comfortable fit of IBA, but maybe the IOTV is the way of the future)? How about everyone get shuttled to and from class in an 1151, or better yet MRAP? Where did cost benefit analysis go? Someone in CSOM it must be a subject that at least gets breezed over....
What about smaller systems linked together? The clocks have radio links....why do we need 60 foot poles? Are there not enough buildings to attach things to?
How is it that funding for silly little projects gets approved while we have to operate on a smaller budget?
People need to think larger
People need to think larger about safety. Safety isn't just about making sure the masked gunmen are taken out of the picture, but also about natural disaster awareness and accident prevention. The PA system can be used to alert people of chemical spills, impending weather threats, and may have been useful on August 1st, 2007 to inform of the I-35W bridge disaster. The U already has alert systems in place via text message, Facebook, and Twitter but during these days of technology, there's still something to be said for low tech where one message can reach many people with or with out a cell phone. To me, the silly projects are the one's that serve no purpose such as the renaming of IT or the remodeling of the technology section in the Coffman Union Bookstore.