Ditto.  It keeps emergency response on campus with people who know where the microbiology or chemistry labs are.  The campus police contact and direct the emergency responders to the right places.  We also live in an area that knows tornadoes.  When those hit it can be days before cell phones are usable again. 

 

In addition, our phone system is set up to sound warnings and alerts in each lab and classroom for imminent danger.  Take shelter for a tornado.  Shelter in place because of an incident on campus.

 

Linda K Riebling

Natural Sciences Technical Assistant

University of Illinois Springfield

 

 

We did install on-campus phones in our labs. On our campus, all emergency calls (“911” calls) need to be routed through our university police department (they are actual NYS police officers).

 

If you dial 911 from your cell phone, you are connected to the Monroe County 911 dispatch center, who doesn’t know where Smith Hall is. They know street address, not building numbers. This leads to wasted time for the emergency responders to get to us.

 

If you pick up a wired phone and call 911, you are routed to our UP emergency number, and they will either come and investigate or immediately call for an ambulance and then come investigate (depends on the severity of the situation).

 

The other reason we did this is that in times of natural disaster, cell phone service is sometimes knocked out, so inundated that you can’t get your call through.

 

 

 

Greetings,

 

We are designing lab space and have run into the question of a hard wired phone? How many out there are still doing this? Would you recommend it? Suggestions and ideas are welcome.

 

Thanks,

 

Margaret Smallbrock

Campus Environmental Health and Safety Manager

South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

501 East St. Joseph Street

Rapid City, SD 57701-3995