Florida Atlantic University tests nerves and system

Shooting incident tests Florida Atlantic University's new emergency systems
By Scott Travis and Jerome Burdi | South Florida Sun-Sentinel
May 1, 2008

BOCA RATON - Sirens, audio alerts and e-mail warned Florida Atlantic University students and employees in the middle of the night Wednesday of a shooting on campus.

Within minutes notifications went out, but some students say it took too long to receive the automated messages. Some were confused by the sirens.

Sophomore Kelsey Hamilton, who lives on campus, slept through the announcements and sirens. He found out about the shooting when a friend called his cell phone to see if he was all right.

The loudspeaker announcement "was so low it sounded like a neighbor's TV," Hamilton said. "It was that quiet."

FAU police arrested Omar Everton Graham Jr., 23, of Royal Palm Beach, on suspicion of firing a gun during a student party in Building 58, Unit 233, at the University Village Apartments. The incident, which left one student with minor injuries, prompted a campus lockdown for half the day and disrupted final exams two days before graduation.

The shooting gave FAU an unexpected chance to use its new emergency alert systems, which were installed in the past few months. Officials say the system, still being tested, worked well for the most part. They confirm students and employees received an e-mail alert, but it's unclear how many, if any, received a phone call or text message.
click post title for more