Emergency Phone Fails on Campus
A Langara emergency phone has been out of order for two weeks with no update on when it will be fixed.
A Langara emergency phone has been out of order for two weeks with no update on when it will be fixed.
Located by the lower level parking lot, a code blue tower, has been out of order for unknown reasons. Code blue towers are emergency phones that have call buttons, cameras and the ability to broadcast public announcements in the case of an emergency.
Campus cops do code blue walk bys
Dwayne Doornbosh, the director of facilities at Langara, said IT is still working on identifying the problem and doesn’t know when service will be restored.
“In situations where a [code blue tower] emergency phone isn’t working, the security team monitors the area more frequently until the unit is up and running again,” Doornbosh said.
Sorry, wrong number
Doornbosh said security usually receives three to five tower emergency calls a year, but sometimes the calls are from people who do not understand their intended use and have non-emergency questions.
David Aucoin, the manager of safety, security and emergency management at Langara, said emergency phones are one of several ways for students to get help on campus, such as their safe walk service.
Safe walk service available any time
“Our safe walk service is also available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, all year long,” Aucoin said. “Security can escort you to another building, your vehicle or a bus stop.”
Post-secondary institutions such as KPU and UBC also have emergency phones and other ways for students to get help on campus. At KPU, students can use the university’s safe mobile app to contact security and emergency services, arrange an escorted walk on campus and more. At UBC, students can request help from police officers that are stationed on campus.
Megan Davies, a design formation student at Langara, said despite the code blue tower being out of order, she does not feel endangered on campus.
“But in an emergency situation, it would be nice to know that they were all up and working,” Davies said.
We have some families who give their college kids a 2-way voice GPS medical alert type button in addition to the cell phone. The button is more discreet in an emergency. Even though the device is really intended for senior citizens as a medical alert button, it works just as well for kids in these situations. https://www.medicalcarealert.com/Articles.asp?ID=365