With recent bomb threats plaguing universities all across the country, Southern University addresses its plans when it comes to dealing with such threats.
“Of course the University will release info to students and staff before we start making statements to the public.” Edward Pratt, Assistant to the Chancellor for Media Relations said.
According to the Southern University Emergency Response Plan, in the event that a bomb threat is received during normal business hours, University police will be immediately notified in which an immediate evacuation of the campus would ensue.
Ronald Stevens, chief of the Southern University Police Department, said “Within five minutes of receiving news of a bomb threat, a first call alert will be issued followed by officers going to classes to alert faculty all around campus.”
Launched back in 2008, the FIRSTCALL system is 24-hour telephone warning system that will alert the Southern University family about critical information, warnings and advisories concerning emergencies on campus.
“As soon as a threat is received, the info would go out immediately through all the campus media we use, text, email, etc…” SUBR Chancellor James Llorens said.
In regards to evacuation procedures the campus Emergency Response Plan includes routes with the primary route being Harding Boulevard, the secondary route being Swan Street North of Harding, and the alternate route being Mills Avenue, which is the only street on the North side of campus.
“For students that live off campus, they would be evacuated through the campus buses, Llorens said.
With LSU having to perform a campus-wide evacuation for a bomb threat they received on the seventeenth of this month, many students on campus wonder if Southern could be next.
Justin Thompson, a freshman Business major from Baton Rouge said, “The only emergencies I’m used to on campus is hurricanes, I don’t know what would happen if the University received a bomb threat.”
LSU wasn’t the only university targeted as three other institutions; Hiram College, North Dakota State University and the University of Texas at Austin were also forced to evacuate their campuses due to bomb threats recently.
Tasha Henderson, a junior Accounting major from Baton Rouge said, “I’ve heard about bomb threats at places that are really close to Southern, I just pray that we don’t get any because we missed enough class from Hurricane Isaac.”
Even though LSU is about twenty minutes away from campus, an even closer location the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport which is about ten minutes from Southern’s campus was evacuated last Thursday when a call came about a bomb in the airport’s parking garage.
“We’ve heard about these recent threats and if we needed any added assistance in the event one should arise, we would contact the Baton Rouge City Police and the East Baton Rouge Parish Sherriff’s Department,” Stevens said.
LSU, along with the other three institutions, as well as the Metro Airport were all declared safe after extensive searches.
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Southern systems ready for threats
October 17, 2012
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