Michigan State University tests emergency alert system on campus
EAST LANSING, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Michigan State University conducted its first emergency alert test of the new school year on Wednesday.
While one school official said the test went exactly as planned, students tell CBS News Detroit they couldn't hear it.
"I did not hear the siren at all. I was just walking back from my first class. I got an email on my phone, but I did not hear anything," said freshman Anastasia Oresky.
According to MSU police, there are eight outdoor sirens scattered across the campus, so not every green emergency tower lit up on Wednesday.
"Nothing happened really," said fresman Parnesh Vats. "We had open windows, and people were hanging out … even my friend and stuff said that nothing happened. But the MSU app did give us an alert."
Over the summer, MSU implemented several changes to security and the alert system on campus.
Dana Whyte, spokesperson for MSU's Department of Police and Public Safety, says they will gather feedback from this test to improve the system.
"We are currently undergoing an after-action review from a security risk management consultant, and once we get the results from those, this is all part of that comprehensive review," she said. "If we receive recommendations from them, we're definitely going to look into it and see if we have room for improvement there too."
Whyte says the goal for the outdoor sirens is for students and faculty to hear them no matter where they are on campus. The sirens are used for situations of violence and weather alerts.
"We really want to make sure that all outdoor areas on campus are audibly covered," she said. "No matter where you are on campus, you'd be able to at least hear the tone that something is going on."
