Procedures for emergency notification, response and evacuation
December 13, 2023 8:02 AM

Dear campus community member,

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is continuously planning to keep you safe in the event of emergencies or natural disasters. To maintain an effective emergency response and evacuation plan, we recently completed a test including two components: a drill and an exercise. We are informing you of these efforts so you have more information about our plans to protect you in the event of an emergency, and to comply with disclosure mandates set forth in the federal Clery Act.

On Nov. 29, first responders from police, fire and emergency medical services representing multiple agencies in our community gathered for a functional exercise at the Advanced Computation Building. Participants were presented with a hypothetical scenario involving an active shooter attack affecting the campus, and then were asked to react and make decisions as they would during a real-life event. The exercise tested various components of the Campus Emergency Operations Plan, including evacuation procedures. On Dec. 5, university leadership gathered virtually and were presented with response actions and challenges from the Nov. 29 exercise. This follow-up scenario determined the university’s decision-making priorities and procedures for this type of event.

Also on Dec. 5, we initiated a test of our Illini-Alert emergency notification system. The drill was announced ahead of time by a mass email to campus and in Eweek, GradLinks and I-News bulletin notifications to students, faculty and staff. The Illini-Alert system sent an email to all active campus email users. Those who have registered alternate email addresses or mobile numbers also received messages sent to their preferred medium.

Illini-Alert messages are also posted to X (formerly Twitter) and digital signage throughout campus buildings. This approach increases the speed and breadth of our distribution of emergency notifications, and it provides alternate notification methods that will continue to function even if one system fails to work properly.

This two-component test is conducted annually to ensure that we have a robust response plan in the event of a campus emergency, that first responders are prepared to react quickly and decisively, and that our notifications will reach you in a timely and effective manner.

If you have not signed up to receive Illini-Alert text messages, please visit emergency.illinois.edu to register.

To view the university’s emergency response and evacuation procedures, please visit go.illinois.edu/EmergencyResponse.

The Division of Public Safety is committed to maintaining a safe and secure campus environment where education, research and public service can flourish. We can only do so with the assistance of our community, and we hope this information is useful to our campus partners.

Sincerely,

Brian R. Brauer
Executive Director of Emergency Management