Better Late Than Never
L
ess than a year ago the Virginia Tech campus was sent into turmoil due to one man’s violent outrage. Every news station in the country covered the story of the shooting that resulted in 33 fatalities. It was the deadliest shooting in America’s history.
The shootings took place by the same gunman in two different locations. The first shooting occurred in a dorm where two people were killed, and over two hours later the second shooting murdered 31 others.
The time between these horrendous happenings is devastating in itself. There was no alert for the students not to go to class or a warning that two students had been killed by an unknown predator. “We knew we had two people shot,� campus police Chief Flinchum said. “We secured the building. We secured the crime scene.�
Unfortunately the Virginia Tech campus police force’s efforts were not enough. The window of possibility to prevent many more killings was slammed shut by the decision not to notify students of the tragedy.
For weeks the media coverage of the massacre was inescapable. Many students from schools all over the United States expressed their sympathy for Virginia Tech’s heartbreaking experience. Facebook was a key tool used to reach out by using the Virginia Tech logo in place of a profile picture.
I did not know anyone who was a direct victim of the tragedy, but the event certainly shook me up. Each day I walked on campus wondering if the people passing me were ready to pull out a gun and do some damage. I, along with the rest of Auburn University’s population, would be helpless.
In September one of our top SEC rivals, the University of Georgia, took action to protect its students and its campus. With the Virginia Tech victims and the anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks in mind, UGA’s Office of Security and Emergency Preparedness took action.
The office is specifically promoting two relatively new initiatives—the UGAAlert emergency notification system and identification of building safety and security representative. The UGAAlert system allows the university to send out messages via voice, text or e-mail to registered users.
This week Auburn has finally taken its own action to help ensure the safety of students and faculty on campus. “This Week at AU� is the weekly e-mail Auburn students receive. November 1, six months after the Virginia Tech shooting, the subject of the e-mail was titled “Sign up for new emergency notification system.�
AU Alert is our very own version of an emergency notification system. People who have registered will be provided information and instructions through cell phones, home phones, e-mail or other text-receiving devices for what to do in an emergency.
I feel confident in Auburn’s decision to implement such a system. Prevention efforts can only go so far, but it is extremely important to always be thinking and planning for the unexpected. I admit that I have not thought about Virginia Tech’s tragedy everyday since it happened, but throughout the months that have elapsed I have been hoping for Auburn to prove that the incident was a wake up call and take some action.
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