A massive siren will sound off on campus at 2 p.m. as part of an emergency notification test conducted by UH Police Department.
The Mass Notification Voice and Siren System is one of the ways the UH police can efficiently communicate with the campus community in the event of a crisis.
‘The siren is used in instances such as if there were an active shooter on campus or an out-of-control fire,’ UHPD Chief Malcolm Davis said. ‘Anything the whole campus needs to know right now.’
Today’s test will help UH police measure and maintain the efficacy of the alerts.
It will consist of a 30-second siren followed by a brief voice message.
At the test’s conclusion, students can contribute to campus safety by noting where they were when the test was performed and filling out the survey on the campus police Web site, http://www.uh.edu/police.
‘We are hoping to get feedback from anybody on campus at 2 p.m. along the lines of how (the alert) worked, how it didn’t work, what was your experience, where were you?’ Davis said.
If today’s alert was not a test, UH police would strongly encourage students to monitor their text messages or move to the nearest computer to check for e-mail updates on the state of the campus crisis.
‘However you get your e-mail, see if there is something we want you to do or not do,’ Davis said. ‘It will be emergency specific.’
Though the Mass Notification Voice and Siren System is normally reserved for major campus crisis, today’s is ‘just a test, so don’t freak out,’ Davis said.
