Collegiate Times

Thanks for the updates

Police received reports around 12:50...why did it take so long for us to get our VT ALERTS??? What if this was a real emergency?

Will, exactly. The only reason I knew this was going on was because I checked the VT home page. I did not receive my text for VT Alerts until 1:57...over AN HOUR later. If this had been another Cho, the message would have come too late.

This shows that absolutely nothing was learned or done differently (besides spending thousands and thousands of dollars to replace doors, put in the message boards, etc.). The thing they never seem to grasp is the "time" aspect. Sure all these "additions" helped, but without giving timely notice, they wouldn't help any. Also, I was in a classroom this time, and the instructors were all clueless as to what to tell the students to do. They were given no instruction whether to keep students in the classroom or not. Finally, I tried to leave, and at the same time they were locking our building down too. Very unorganized. I also saw students breaking down and crying upon returning to the classroom after lock down.

I never received a text alert at all and I'm signed up. Received the test a few weeks ago just fine.

I received an email from my RA (in west AJ) on 4/16 faster than i received notification today...

Alerts were very, very late. I didn't know until I had people call me to check up to see if I was okay. I cannot believe the inadequacy of the VT alert system after plenty of time to develop it and run tests. I would like a report as to why the delay took so long. I would appreciate rash half truth information than nothing. This way I could at least know to take basic steps like close and lock my door. I agree with the person below, the teachers and other staff need training when it comes to what to do in these situations. These are peoples lives we are dealing with!

I suppose Police Chief Flinchum will get another raise like he did after 4/16. He got a whopping 52% after that one. I'm guessing they'll give him a bit this time too for doing what he did before.....key word is time time time time......they'll never learn and this proves it.

You can verify his raise from 2007 to 2008 on the Faculty and Staff salary database from the link on the homepage of this very site.

Although i am no longer a student, i still live near campus and have friends that still attend classes. When i first heard the news (at 2:00), I immediately went to the VT homepage, and saw the same information as the text message that was forwarded to me from VT alerts (from a friend). Unfortunately, i had to go from home computer to work computer, but for the next half hour (2-2:30), NOTHING, i say again NOTHING was posted on VT's website about the situation. UNACCEPTABLE. And when i say nothing, i mean they took down the original black-box alert on the home page. There was NOTHING anywhere on the VT homepage that said anything about Pritchard. I wanted information straight from the source (VT) and i had to hit reload for half an hour to finally get the info. The only other sources of info were Collegiate times and roanoke.com which really only provided the same info that VT took down. How about VT learn how to TIMELY inform students of these situations and give out AS MUCH INFORMATION AS POSSIBLE. I seriously expected more from VT, especially after 4-16. But unfortunately, i was let down. On a separate note, A coworker who was in one of the rooms in Norris is NOT surprised by the lack of appropriate response from VT. His opinion: nothing has changed...

It seems like a lot of people call TXTs 10, 20, 30, even 60 minutes after other people. I'd heard about it from other people many times before actually getting a notice myself. What is up with that? Didn't tech just sort of give up on testing the system and getting good results?

Sure he did get a raise. Why do we have to be negative about this and make comments about someones salary. We need to focus on cutting down on the time between events and VT alerts, not whine about a salary increase that you most likely don't pay via taxes. That man is probably still emotionally messed up after 4/16, worse than some students, I'm glad he didn't quit.

The delay of texting is most likely due to time it takes to pass through the cellular system (especially with the load of everyone calling to check on one another). How well do you think you can handle 15-40,000 messages if it all hit you at once? I think VT alerts should put out a report of the timeline. It is possible that they were slow to act but it is still possible that communication systems can't handle the load. Did anyone hear the campus sirens?

I agree with the person below me. Flinchum is an outstanding, remarkable man and an asset to the Virginia Tech community. It would have been a real loss if he had quit following 4/16. He's such a great addition to the Hokie family and has worked hard to improve the safety of our campus. Granted, the alert system definitely failed us today, I don't believe it is a reflection of Flinchum at all. Whoever published the classroom and text alerts (VT...) failed to provide adequate information directing us into a course of action. Instead of pointing fingers and making ill judgments, let's do what Hokies to best - RALLY together and bring change to our alert network. Make it known to administrators that we felt poorly advised and demand a better alert network.

Assuming Roy Cole was the person who called the police right after he heard the suspicious sounds at 12:45 then it took the police 30 minutes to arrive at his door. Does that make you feel safe? To know that if you were on fire, being robbed, being raped, being shot, or anything else that is horrible, that it would take the police 30 minutes to get there... That wouldn't make me feel very safe. However, keep in mind I am ASSUMING that Roy Cole (from above article) was the person who actually called the police and that he Immediately called after hearing the sounds. If these assumptions are false, then so-be-it, but if these assumptions are true, then ... you can complete my thought here.

Did not hear the sirens. But if the testing of the system worked previously, it should have worked today. If the testing did not work, the problems should have been addressed, not ignored. At the very least, why was information not available on the website? We deserve some answers and we deserve an apology for not having the system right.

I got my text at 1:38. Just a note.

I respect what the PD does and stands for, but the only one ultimately responsible for your own safety is YOU! When seconds matter, the police are only minutes away...

All the Virginia Tech administration will do so is say, "oops, my bad". No matter what, no one loses their job at Virginia Tech when public safety fails. 30 people died at the hands of Cho in Norris Hall because the VT policy committee dithered for over an hour on whether to warn the community about the murders at West AJ. Yet, everyone in that room kept their jobs. At Tech, students can die, but faculty flexes tenure!

Guapo's 2 cents, you are incorrect. They took down the message on the VT website around 2pm, so they could update it with the new message which was displayed a few minutes later. I was in class at the time it happened and the VT alerts boards flashed the alert message at 1:40pm. I received my first text message at 1:58pm, and I received a phone call from VT alerts at 2:09pm. Also, when I was in class, I could hear the sirens going off at 1:40pm which was the same time as the VT alert boards in the classrooms. I am proud of the way VT handled this situation, and hopefully they can get the rest of the bugs figured out with the 3n.

The theme to take away from the proceedings today: when things go wrong, you are only as safe as you make yourself.

I wonder if the people who set off the noises were freshmen...they obviously weren't anyone who was on campus for April 16th, otherwise they would have a better understanding of the fear an incident like this causes. I still get a little concerned whenever I hear a loud noise and getting that text message really scared myself everyone around me. Not to mention the time and energy wasted by the police officers having to respond to this stupid prank as well as the fact the nail gun cartridges were probably stolen, wasting more money. Also, the timeline says the police received the call at 1, and arrived at 1:15. Fifteen minutes is still way too long for a potentially very dangerous situation, but I guess it's better than 30 minutes. Regarding the alerts, I got the first text but no others. The message board in my classroom worked, but directions would have been nice (aka stay where you are, go home, etc). All in all, improvements are definitely needed. And people could definitely think a little more about their actions. PS Did anyone else notice the last alert said "check web for more infOmation"? :)

Here's an outside view on the effectiveness of the emergency alter system, at VT an elsewhere. http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/education/2008/november/Va--Tech-Officials-Unhappy-With-Emergency-Notification-Failure.html

The text messages did not clarify if classes were cancelled. Many seniors and grad students decided to go home or stay home after receiving the news. Many of which were penalized later for missing quizzes or turning in hw late.. I do not think that is right at all. After everything that has happened, teachers are more concerned with getting hw in on time rather than the students' actual safety.