University Police Services, Southern Command Associate Vice President & Director Adam Garcia has passed along some general safety tips for all of us as we navigate our campuses and our community:
- Look confident, keep your head up and walk with a confident stride.
- Make eye contact with people you encounter. This shows self-confidence and may deter a potential attack.
- Be aware and alert to your surroundings. Don’t talk on your cellphone or listen to music when you are in an unfamiliar area. This can be a distraction and can make you vulnerable for an attack.
- If you do jog alone, stay in public areas that are well lit and populated.
- Keep your hands free. Limit the number of items you’re carrying or use a backpack or bag to ensure that your hands are free to defend, if needed.
- Regularly change your routine.
- Develop a survival mind set. While you’re in a safe place visualize a dangerous situation and what you would do if confronted with it. This may be unpleasant, however, it is a good idea to prepare yourself if you were ever attacked, so you don’t freeze with fear if something ever was to happen.
- If you feel uncomfortable in a situation, don’t worry about hurting the person’s feelings, just leave.
- Trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, trust your gut and do what you need to do to be safe.
- In the event of an active assailant at any of
our campuses, remember to “Run, hide, fight!”
- RUN:
- Evacuate If possible
- If there is considerable distance between you and the gunfire/armed person, quickly move away from the sound of the gunfire/armed person. If the gunfire/armed person is in your building and it is safe to do so, run out of the building and move far away until you are in a secure place to hide.
- Leave your belongings behind.
- Keep your hands visible to law enforcement.
- Take others with you, but do not stay behind because others will not go.
- Call 911 when it is safe to do so. Do not assume that someone else has reported the incident. The information that you are able to provide law enforcement may be critical, e.g. number of shooters, physical description and identification, number and type(s) of weapons, and location of the shooter.
- RUN:
- HIDE:
- Hide silently in as safe a place as possible
- If the shooter is in close proximity and you cannot evacuate safely, hide in an area out of the armed person’s view.
- Choose a hiding place with thicker walls and fewer windows, if possible.
- Lock doors and barricade with furniture, if possible.
- Turn off lights
- Silence phones and turn off other electronics.
- Close windows, shades and blinds, and avoid being seen from outside the room, if possible.
- If you are outdoors and cannot RUN safely, find a place to hide that will provide protection from gunfire such as a brick wall, large trees or buildings.
- Remain in place until you receive an “all clear” signal.
- FIGHT:
- Take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter
- As a last resort, fight. If you cannot evacuate or hide safely and only when your life is in imminent danger, take action.
- Attempt to incapacitate or disrupt the actions of the shooter.
- Act with physical aggression toward the shooter.
- Use items in your area such as fire extinguishers or chairs.
- Throw items at the shooter if possible.
- Call 911 when it is safe to do so.