Code
Blue phones serve many functions on campus
By
Leiloni De Gruy
Online Forty-Niner
Contributing Writer
Emergency Code Blue telephones are located in various spots around the campus
of Cal State Long Beach and are used to report crimes in progress, and for
personal and medical emergencies. Beyond this, phones have been frequently
used for minor episodes such as students needing a ride to their car and even
those who use them frivolously.
According to Greg Pascal, the Communications and Records supervisor, there
were 172 larceny thefts, including petty and grand theft, 82 car thefts and
2 rapes reported at CSULB in 2005.
“
It is difficult to track the number of calls that come from the emergency phone
systems on campus because we retrieve calls from cell phones, pay phones” and
other methods of communication, Pascal said.
However, a number of these emergencies have come from those who have used the
campus’ emergency systems.
The telephones are an extension of the 911 system and act as direct connections
to the campus’ police department. Once a button is pressed, the phone
line activates itself and immediately sends the call to a dispatcher. The dispatcher
then alerts campus police to send out an officer.
Though University Police is equipped to respond to a high volume of calls,
911 hang-ups create additional work for a police department and public safety
department whose jurisdiction extends passed the campus and its 1-mile radius.
“
We get the 911 hang-ups where people push the button and walk away. We still
respond to those,” said Scott Brown, Police Sergeant and Emergency Services
Coordinator at CSULB. “That’s the big problem with 911 hang ups,
we have to commit an officer or two to go check it out while something else
is happening somewhere else.”
In terms of catching a ride, “It’s really not what we would like
them to do but our system can handle it,” Brown said. “We’d
rather they keep it for emergencies but if the emergency is that they are in
the dark and want a ride, I’d rather they push that button than get hurt.”
Je Woramali, a pubic relations, major who has used an emergency phone in the
past for this, said “I needed a ride to my car, but I never knew that
by doing that someone else may have been kept from getting help.”
“
The systems should be used in case of an extreme emergency,” said Daniel
Kim, a print journalism major. “Looking at the statistics, crime on our
campus is possible. We have to realize that we are a public campus. If everyone
pushed the button for minor cases there would be anarchy.”
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