Emergency information

Get the alerts, and know the words

Porter Alert sends urgent instructions by text, email, app push, campus-computer pop-up, and — for a life-safety event — outdoor sirens and building PA. Your Porter email is enrolled automatically; add and test your mobile number in MyPorter, because text is the fastest channel. The messages use consistent verbs: "Shelter in place" (stay inside, away from windows, until told otherwise), "Evacuate" (leave now by the nearest safe exit, go to the area named), "Secure/Lockdown" (get out of sight, lock or barricade the door, silence your phone, stay put), and "All clear" (the only message that ends an event). Do not rely on rumor or social media to tell you it is over.

Program the campus number now: Campus Safety, (715) 555–0191, staffed 24/7. Call 911 first for any immediate threat to life, then Campus Safety so they can direct responders on campus.

Severe weather

For a tornado warning, move to the lowest interior level, into an interior hallway, stairwell, or restroom away from windows and large open roofs like gyms and auditoriums; every building posts its shelter areas and the residence halls drill them. Stay there until the "all clear," not just until the noise stops. For severe thunderstorms and lightning, get inside a building or a hard-topped vehicle. Winter emergencies are mostly about not traveling — see weather and campus closures — and about reporting a heat or power outage in a residence hall immediately.

Fire

Any alarm means leave — no exceptions for "probably burnt toast." Use stairs, never elevators, feel doors before opening, close doors behind you, and go to your building's posted assembly point so staff can account for people. Do not go back in for anything until the fire department clears the building. If you cannot use the stairs, go to the marked area of refuge in the stairwell and call Campus Safety with your exact location; responders check those first. Tampering with an alarm, extinguisher, or sprinkler is a serious conduct violation because it kills people in the next real fire.

Violence, threats and medical emergencies

For an active threat, the order is Run (get out if there is a path), Hide (if you cannot — lock/barricade, lights off, silent, away from the door), Fight (only as a last resort, together). When police arrive, show empty hands and follow commands. Report a threatening person or a concerning message to Campus Safety, and use the anonymous tip line or the behavioral-concern form for something that is not an emergency but is not right. For a medical emergency call 911 then Campus Safety; AEDs are mounted near building entrances and main desks, bleeding-control kits are with them in many buildings, and Campus Safety officers are trained first responders.