Dear Members of the Campus Community,
We are writing with important information regarding the upcoming all-campus lockdown/shelter-in-place drill that will occur tomorrow, Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at 10:45 a.m.
Practicing emergency response is critical to individual and institutional preparedness. Our primary drill objectives are to practice and test our emergency communications, campus lockdown procedures, and success in sheltering in place. This exercise will 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 response procedures for responding to violent acts or threats.
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 broadcast through our indoor communication systems, Talk-A-Phone outdoor loudspeakers, and with a Security Alert message via text and campus e-mail. Indoor and outdoor loudspeakers as well as the Security Alert will announce an “all-clear” message upon drill conclusion. Total drill time will be roughly five (5) minutes. Please follow the appropriate 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.
- Residents should avoid gathering together in groups and try to spread out within rooms as much as feasible.
- Residents should keep cell phones on but in silent mode, remain quiet, and wait where they are for the “all-clear” announcement via text and campus e-mail.
- Resident Directors and Assistants do not need to complete person accountability forms for this drill but are expected to be familiar with the process.
Academic and Administrative Building Lockdown/Shelter-In-Place Procedures (includes Wheelock Student Center, Memorial Fieldhouse, Kilworth Chapel, and Collins Memorial 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 during the drill) 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 work areas or in the campus buildings/spaces where they are located at the time of the drill.
- Individuals should 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 where they are 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 You Are Outside when the Drill Commences
- Anyone who is outside when the drill commences should immediately seek shelter in the nearest building if it is possible to enter before it is locked.
- Anyone who is outside under an actual emergency lockdown situation and unable to access a nearby building before it is locked should leave campus immediately.
Limited Availability of Security Services During Drill
- During the drill, Security Services staff 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.
Checking your Contact Information
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 https://my.pugetsound.edu/ by selecting My Information → Personal Information and making the necessary changes.
- Faculty and staff, please review and update your cell phone number through the portal at https://my.pugetsound.edu/ by selecting HR Staff Resources → Personal Details → Contact Details and making the necessary changes by clicking on the arrow next to the phone number type.
Emergency Preparedness Education Opportunities
Knowing what to do and options for responding in an emergency or threatening situation is important for every campus community member. Puget Sound offers online education opportunities to introduce options individuals 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. You will be prompted to enter your Puget Sound username and password and then prompted to enter a second password: “PugetSoundLoggers” to watch the video.
Also, please review university emergency preparedness and response procedures posted at www.pugetsound.edu/emergency/.
Send feedback or questions you may have following the drill to riskmanagement@pugetsound.edu. Thank you for supporting emergency preparedness.
Stacy L. Kelly (She/Her)
Chief Risk Management Officer
253.879.2729
skelly@pugetsound.edu
Greg Lynch
Assistant Director of Security
253.879.3311
glynch@pugetsound.edu