Carnegie Mellon is continually engaged in the development, implementation and evaluation of emergency response plans to ensure that we are well-prepared as a community should a health emergency, such as the H1N1 flu, a natural disaster or crisis impact our campus. As you prepare to return to campus for fall classes, I would like to take this opportunity to discuss several aspects of our plan and encourage you to take personal steps that will help keep you informed and prepared.
The university has in place an emergency notification system called Alert Now. This service sends voice and/or text messages to registered phones in the event of a campus emergency. The message gives you brief information about the nature of the emergency and directs you to the Campus Alert Web site for more information. We encourage all members of our campus community to visit https://my.cmu.edu/portal/site/main/alert to sign up for this service. It is free of charge and the privacy of your contact information is guaranteed. You will only be contacted by Alert Now if there is an incident that threatens public safety or during tests of the system in the fall and spring semesters.
Additionally, it is important that you ensure that your contact information on file with the university is correct for the upcoming school year. In particular, we request your local address and contact phone number if you are living off-campus, in case we need to contact you directly during an emergency. To update your information, please visit Student Information Online at https://acis.as.cmu.edu/sio/ and click on "Address Data" on the top banner.
Our ability to successfully respond to an emergency situation is dependent, in part, on personal advance planning by each member of the university community. This is especially important should the university ever need to close specific facilities, suspend classes or evacuate the campus. In severe circumstances we will need the support and cooperation of each member of the community, and therefore, we ask you to consider the following:
1. The university has established a process that will allow for a timely, orderly closing of university facilities, and notification will be sent to the community via email, text message, voicemail and posted information on the university Web site (www.cmu.edu). Should the need arise to close residence halls, there is a plan for securing students' possessions.
2. Upon appropriate notification, you should be prepared to depart campus immediately. We ask that you give serious consideration to how you would quickly leave campus. We recommend that you return to your home, or the home of a nearby relative or friend if possible.
3. If you are living in university housing and are unable to return to your home or stay with a nearby friend or relative, the university is prepared to provide a place for you to stay on campus. Although operations will be significantly curtailed, you will have access to basic services.
4. During an emergency, important information will be available via email and the university's Web site.
Just as the university needs to prepare and plan for emergencies, so do you. If you are living in the community, the planning checklist below is intended to assist you with personal planning. Additional information on planning and response is also available on the Carnegie Mellon Environmental Health and Safety Web site (http://www.cmu.edu/ehs/).
Thank you for your attention and assistance in helping to keep Carnegie Mellon a safe and healthy environment for everyone.
