Dear Campus Members,
I am writing regarding tomorrow’s (Thursday’s) scheduled all-campus lockdown/shelter-in-place drill that will begin at 10:45 a.m.
Practicing emergency response is critical to preparedness. Primary drill objectives are to practice and test emergency communications, campus lockdown, and sheltering in place procedures. All of these activities help prepare our Puget Sound community for potential circumstances involving a violent act or threat on or near campus.
Security Services staff, along with Tacoma Police officers, will tour buildings during the drill for evaluation purposes. Together, we will review coordinated university and police procedures which help us improve our response if ever faced with an actual violent act/threat circumstances.
During the drill, Security Services will be available for emergency assistance only. Please conduct routine business with Security Services outside of drill times. Your patience immediately following the drill is appreciated. It takes a few minutes to get the campus unlocked and for Security Services to resume normal operations.
Tomorrow’s drill will commence at 10:45 a.m. with an announcement that the drill has begun and to follow campus lockdown procedures. The announcement will be made through Talk-A-Phone outdoor loudspeakers and a Security Alert message via text and campus e-mail. Outdoor loudspeakers and a Security Alert also will announce an “all-clear” message upon drill conclusion. Total drill time will be roughly five minutes. Please follow directions below based upon your campus location at the time of drill.
Residential Building Lockdown/Shelter-In-Place Procedures
- Resident Directors and Assistants are responsible for their respective housing facilities. If present during the drill, they should tour their buildings quickly to verbally communicate lockdown instructions to residents. They should check exterior doors and windows to ensure they are locked and closed.
- Residents should lock their room doors and windows, close blinds, and turn off room lights.
- Residents should take cover by staying low to the floor, away from doors and windows, and as close to interior hallway walls as possible. Avoid gathering together in groups and try to spread out within rooms as much as feasible.
- Residents should silence cell phones, remain quiet, and wait for the “all-clear” announcement via text and campus e-mail.
Academic and Administrative Building Lockdown/Shelter-In-Place Procedures (includes Wheelock Student Center, Memorial Fieldhouse, Chapel, and the Library where staff in those buildings will guide occupant response)
- Security staff will remotely lock exterior doors of academic and administrative buildings when the drill commences.
- Faculty who are teaching at the time should lock their classroom doors, secure windows, close blinds, and turn off room lights while instructing students to remain in the classroom, stay low to the floor, and away from doors and windows.
- Other faculty and staff should follow lockdown/shelter-in-place procedures in their offices or work areas.
- Try to spread out as much as feasible within rooms near interior hallway walls.
- Building occupants should have cell phones on but in silent mode, remain quiet, and wait for the “all-clear” announcement via text and campus e-mail.
- Faculty and staff do not need to complete person accountability forms for this drill but are expected to be familiar with the process.
If outside and on-campus during the drill, follow these procedures:
- Immediately seek shelter in the nearest building if you can enter before it is locked.
- Note: If you are outside during an actual emergency lockdown situation and are unable to access a nearby building before it is locked, you should leave campus immediately.
It is important in an emergency situation that we can reach you. To receive emergency messages, students, faculty, and staff need to have their cell phone numbers listed with the university, along with their other contact information. Please take the following action:
- Students, please review and update your cell phone number through the portal at myPugetSound by selecting My Information → Personal Information → Contact Details and making the necessary changes.
- Faculty and staff, please review and update your cell phone number through the portal at myPugetSound by selecting HR Staff Resources → Personal Details → Contact Details and making the necessary changes.
Emergency Preparedness Education
Puget Sound provides survival mindset education to introduce options one should consider if directly confronted with violent circumstances. The concepts and options introduced apply on campus, off campus, if by yourself, and/or in the presence of others. Please review the Shots Fired on Campus training video if you have not already done so or have not done so recently. Click this link to view the 20-minute video pugetsound.edu/security-services/training-video-shots-fired-campus. You will be prompted to enter your Puget Sound username and password and then prompted to enter a second password of “PugetSoundLoggers” to watch the video.
Also, please review university emergency preparedness and response procedures posted at pugetsound.edu/emergency.
Send feedback or questions you may have following the drill to my email address, tbadham@pugetsound.edu. Thank you for supporting emergency preparedness.
Todd A. Badham ’85, P'11 | Director of Security