Using Integration to Create a Unified Emergency Mass Notification System
Overview
Location: St. Louis, MO
Campus Type: Urban
Enrollment: 16,000+
Faculty: 4670
Campus size: 400 acres
Number of campuses: 6
Number of buildings: 181
Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri (WashU), was looking for a comprehensive, unified emergency mass notification system to alert its campus community quickly and easily. With several segmented programs already in place, it was essential the new system also allow for integration across the board.
Ryan Friel, Senior Program Manager within WashU’s Emergency Management Department, discusses the school’s unique challenges and solutions.
Challenge
Identifying the Emergency Notification Gaps
In the early 2010s, WashU faced a fragmented emergency notification process. Before 2007, the university relied on a text and email solution that required voluntary opt-in, reaching only about 10 percent of our community. The transition to Everbridge and subsequent integration with our student and employee databases allowed us to move to an opt out system that significantly increased the number of people we could notify.
Following this transition, our office continued seeking ways to improve not only the systems we use, but the methods we implement to communicate with our community during an emergency.
Solution
Integration with ThreatWatcher™
We have Alertus ThreatWatcher watching the NOAA weather feed for keywords “St. Louis County,” “St. Louis City,” “tornado warning,” and “destructive thunderstorm warning.” If the criteria are met, our system automatically activates. This triggers our Alert Beacons, text-to-speech devices, any integrated public address systems, and desktop pop-ups. Additionally, a notification is sent to everyone in the campus community via the Alertus to Everbridge API.
Every year, we experience numerous tornado warnings and have utilized the system for campus closures. For instance, we once closed the campus early due to snow and ice hazards, so we used the system to help get the message out. We tie the system and activations to our emergency website as well. As soon as we send out a message, it is published on our website. Before, public affairs had to manually submit it, which created a delay. They would have to get the message, log into the system, post the announcement, and at that point, people were going to the website and seeing there was no emergency.
Leveraging Existing Systems and Equipment
Many people on campus have downloaded the WashU Safe App. We’ve been able to leverage that to send push notifications from Alertus, which allows us to connect with those who are affiliated with the university, as well as with visitors.
Instead of requiring users to download another product just for emergencies, why not utilize the tools we already engage with daily? The same goes for desktop pop-up notifications. Since users are already on their computers, this background software can instantly deliver an alert without disrupting their day-to-day activities.
Speeding up Activations
We’ve been looking for ways to further speed up alert activations, and the Alertus System provided this capability. Currently, our dispatchers log into the Alertus Console to send a preset alert to our community. WashU is currently in the process of installing wall-mounted Activation Buttons. Once installed and configured, our personnel will have the ability to activate the system with a push of a button.
Fire Alarm Panels added in all Campus Buildings
Through our relationship with Alertus, we discovered and found value in both Alertus Alert Beacons and their text-to-speech integration with fire alarm systems. Today, WashU has installed over 130 Alert Beacons and equipped 84 buildings with text-to-speech alerting across our several campuses. Our office collaborated with facility partners to implement life safety standards for both new and renovated buildings at WashU. These standards, which have been in place for the last several years, state that WashU will procure voice-capable fire alarm systems to support WashU’s emergency notification system. We’re incredibly fortunate to have great facilities teams who manage these buildings and see the incredible value in allowing the university to communicate via voice during emergencies.
Conclusion
We have six campuses and finding ways to ensure we notify each of them during an emergency, while not over notifying/creating alert fatigue is crucial. Within the Alertus Console, we have set up several unique alerting profiles, which allow us to send targeted messages to a specific campus when needed. The flexibility of the system is a huge benefit for us, and we see that pay off each time an alert is sent to our community.