Emergency call boxes shut down
After emergency call boxes went down, campus police urged students to obtain the “911 Shield” app in order to stay connected on and off campus. In the case of an emergency, the app will send police your exact location along with details to help when they arrive.
October 9, 2017
Emergency call boxes around Southeastern Oklahoma State University have been out of order since the last week of October. The boxes are stationed all over the campus, to give students a sense of security walking to and from classes.
Southeastern’s Campus Captain, Jody Hall, stated that the university has been planning to phase out the boxes because of malfunctions. Due to an unexpected crash of the main server, the plan to eliminate the boxes was pushed up.
With the boxes being out of order, sophomore Communications major, Shalee Buzan said she worries “about other students that walk the Schuler loop alone.” Buzan lives on campus and has a service dog that she walks every day. “I would like a way to feel more prepared in case of an emergency”.
Officer Hall said that the boxes may come back into service. The “911 Shield” app corporation claims they could connect their server to the boxes. As of now, there is no estimated time as to when they will be fixed.
Campus Police urge students to download the “911 Shield” app. Officer Hall calls it “an emergency box in your pocket.” The app has the ability to give SE Police an exact location of the student in need of help on campus grounds with the push of a button. This way students will not have to find the nearest call box if something were to happen.
When students download the app it will ask them for some personal and medical information. All of the information given will be sent to the Police so that they will know who to be looking for. It also has a spot where the user can put in a few words about what type of situation they are in. This gives the officers insight to what their next step should be.
The app is able to work off campus as well. Wherever you have service, it will send your location and information to the nearest police station. This allows the user to have the authorities at their fingertips, at all times.
Sophomore psychology major, Mitchell Barnett has had the “911 Shield” app since his freshman year. He stated “knowing that with just the push of a button the authorities will know where I am, allows me to feel safe when I’m out by myself.” Barnett has never had to use the app but is “happier knowing that I have it than to be stuck in a situation without it”.