In Case of Emergency

Since the shootings at Virginia Tech in April, several Duke committees have been analyzing Duke's own emergency response policies and procedures, researching best practices at other universities and studying new technology and communications systems.

The result: in an emergency, Duke's staff, faculty and students will get information quickly and in numerous ways. The Duke community will also see enhanced systems to help the campus return to normal operations after an emergency has ended.

"The university has devoted considerable effort into reviewing our current procedures and identifying best practices at other institutions," said Kemel Dawkins, vice president of campus services who led the review of Duke's emergency plans in coordination with President Richard H. Brodhead, Executive Vice President Tallman Trask III and other senior leaders. "Our new plans will significantly improve our preparedness."

How will you be notified?

Duke's goal is to send alert messages within 30 minutes of officials being notified of an emergency situation. While other means may be used, the primary methods of alerting people include:

• Email: A "Duke Alert" message will be sent to all students, faculty and staff at their Duke email accounts.
• Web: An alert message will be posted on Duke.edu, Duke Today and Duke Pass and on a new emergency site: www.emergency.duke.edu.
• Phone: An alert message will be posted on 919-684-INFO, Duke's emergency and severe weather information line. Phone trees will also be used to notify essential service staff.
• Direct contact: Supervisors will announce alert messages to staff in their respective units.

Coming in 2008

• Public address: An alert message will be broadcast in and around buildings on campus using a new siren/PA system.
• Text messaging: An alert message will be sent to the cell phones of individuals who register for a new text messaging system.

One area where improvements have been made is communications, Dawkins said, noting the recent adoption of a new, university-wide crisis communications plan. A companion emergency management plan that includes coordination with Duke University Health System is in the final stages of review by Brodhead and senior leaders.

As part of the new plans, senior officials will invest in new, dedicated computer servers to speed e-mail communications. Duke is purchasing a siren and voice-announcement system to broadcast messages across large areas of campus. A system called eNotify will be used to send e-mail, pager and phone messages to senior campus administrators, who would then be charged with helping to communicate information and activate emergency plans. The university will also expand wireless coverage in residence halls to reduce the chance that students would not receive an emergency message because of limited Internet access.

Some ideas are still being considered. For instance, a text-messaging system could be a useful way to notify the Duke community about an emergency, and Dawkins said the university is continuing to investigate options and will likely add other capabilities as technology evolves.

"We're making a significant investment in technology and communications systems to improve what we already have," Dawkins said.

John F. Burness, senior vice president for public affairs and government relations, has convened a crisis communications team with representatives from more than a dozen units around the university and health system. The group has been meeting regularly to review procedures and develop systems for each unit to communicate quickly in an emergency.

Rapid Response

How does Duke define "quickly?" Burness said the federal Clery Act requires that students and employees be given a "timely warning" of a serious or continuing threat. At Duke, the goal will be to send a first notification within 30 minutes after officials learn of the threat.

"There has been much talk since the Virginia Tech incident about large-scale notification systems," Burness said. "The fact is, there is no one method that will reach everyone, so we are basing our strategy on redundancy, multiple ways to reach members of the university community as well as parents, alumni and visitors."

Burness said the notification methods are low-tech and high-tech approaches, such as e-mail, fliers, web postings and person-to-person communications in residence halls and offices. "We know different people get their information in different ways, and we would rather over-communicate than under-communicate at a time of a potential emergency," Burness said.

The team is working on a wide variety of possible scenarios. Traditionally, Duke has focused on severe weather -- notably hurricanes or snow storms -- as its most likely emergency, but the group has also contemplated such incidents as a fire, shooting or cyber attack. New templates will speed the distribution of e-mails, website postings and recordings on the university's main information telephone line, (919) 684-INFO.

On the Web

In addition, the Office of News & Communications has developed plans to provide special alert messages on the Duke University home page, although it will continue to use Duke Today, as its primary information source for the campus community. The office also has an emergency blog ready, and has worked out a reciprocal arrangement with Stanford University to host the other's website if one of the university's servers crash or is otherwise disabled.

The University emergency website, www.mergency.duke.edu, currently has background information about emergency policies. In case of an emergency it would turn into a blog providing updated information.

"We will communicate quickly and often with the Duke community, while still striving for accuracy, so everyone will have the latest information as a situation evolves," Burness said. "That's what people have come to expect in an age of instant communication, blogging and 24/7 news coverage."

Emergency communications won't begin with an emergency itself. Duke's new plans include ongoing efforts to educate members of the Duke community about what to expect in an emergency and what their roles are.

Those efforts will include postcards, posters, e-mails, meetings and a Primetime employee forum with Dawkins and Aaron Graves, associate vice president for campus safety and security, at noon Dec. 11, in Griffith Film Theater. Employees will receive in the mail emergency packets that include wallet cards with key information and magnets with emergency contact numbers.

Graves, noted that the education plans include briefing sessions for managers. "A key part of what we do is education and awareness and letting folks know their responsibilities," Graves said.

While Dawkins and others are pleased with progress on emergency planning, they caution that no emergency plan can ever anticipate every possible crisis. It will be critical, Dawkins and Graves said, to test the plan through regular drills to ensure that operations and communications procedures meet the needs of a changing campus. The first drill should occur sometime this academic year.

"The emergency management process is always a work in progress," Graves said.

How Can You Be Prepared?

Report suspicious activity or concerns to the Duke University Police. (Emergency: 911; non-emergency 684-2444.)

Update your contact information in Duke's information systems. Staff can review their contact information for work and home here. Contact your payroll representative to make changes.

Know your role during an emergency. If you are responsible for notifying staff or students in your area, know how to communicate with them quickly. If you are in an essential services role, know where to go and what your responsibilities are.

Seek help or refer a friend who needs assistance. If you, a friend or any member of the duke community is truggling with personal issues or behaviors, Duke has resources to help. Faculty, staff and their immediate family members can received free personal counseling through Duke's Personal Assistance Service (PAS). Appointments can be made by calling 416-1PAS. Concerned about a student's physical or mental health? Contact Duke Reach online or call 668-3853.