January 4, 2006

Purdue emergency call phones to get increased inspections

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue University Police Department will get extra help beginning this semester to keep the campus's 215 emergency telephones functioning.

The Emergency Telephone System (ETS) units were previously inspected twice each semester, but now with the assistance of Purdue Student Security Patrol members it will allow the boxes to be inspected more often, said Capt. John Cox. The 25 specially selected and trained members of the PSSP will begin checking on each of the boxes biweekly after the semester begins, he said.

As well as inspecting the telephones more often, Cox said repairs will be done quicker on malfunctioning units.

Currently, there are 215 emergency telephones scattered across the university's West Lafayette campus. As more structures are built around campus, more ETS boxes will be added to the network, he said.

"We are continuously looking at traffic patterns around campus to determine if more ETS boxes are needed," Cox said. "It's important that call boxes are available in high-traffic areas as well as areas that could pose as security risks."

The ETS boxes are painted yellow, have a yellow or blue light on top and are marked with "Emergency" and can be operated by opening the door and pressing the button inside. Calls from the ETS will be routed directly to the Purdue Police Department.

"We treat all calls from the ETS boxes as though they were 911 calls," Cox said. "Officers respond to each call, so it's important that they are used only in real emergencies."

All ETS boxes also will soon be updated to make them compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act regulations, he said.

Writer: Christy Jones, (765) 494-1089, christyjones@purdue.edu

Source: John Cox, (765) 496-8351

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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