Posted on 04/18/2007 7:34:45 PM PDT by Timeout
Monday's massacre at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg has cast an unflattering light on communications practices at college campuses but has also brought attention to disaster-response technologies that may thwart future tragedy.
Many observers have questioned whether the second shooting attack in a classroom building might have been prevented with better information-sharing technology, allowing officials to implement a lockdown after the first attack across campus two hours earlier. Thirty-three people were killed in the mass shooting.
"[T]here's no place in our society that should have been more on top of real-time, location-based info-sharing about something of this sort than a college campus because of [its] high concentration of tech-savvy users -- let alone a technology one," said W. David Stephenson, a crisis management expert and principal at the homeland security firm Stephenson Strategies.
"[T]he stark reality is that the first incident should have resulted in an immediate lockdown, and the second round of shooting -- unless there's something that hasn't been reported yet -- should never have happened."
He pointed to the effectiveness of SquareLoop, a company that provides geographically targeted messaging services for distributing emergency alerts to mobile devices. In a sad irony, SquareLoop was scheduled to launch a campus edition of its security service next month, company officials said Tuesday. Instead, SquareLoop posted the offering on its Web site Monday night.
Joe Walsh, SquareLoop's chief operating officer, said the Virginia Tech event "highlights the need for schools, governments, corporations ... everybody to have a good continuity-of-operations plan built in."
His company's product geographically targets messages to ensure that emergency content only goes out to individuals in affected areas. "When people get so many messages that are irrelevant, they stop paying attention," Walsh said, referring to the effect as "alert fatigue."
To differentiate critical messages from the morass of text messages, e-mails and voice mails, SquareLoop's messages are accompanied by special alert tones and vibrating cadences.
Stephenson also said the university should have had a process in place for students to submit their camera photographs and digital videos to increase situational awareness. "The media, especially CNN, have been full of photos shot by students with their camera phones," he said.
Geographically targeted notification is a fairly new technology that businesses are still trying to understand and apply, said Liz Gasster, general counsel and acting executive director of the Cyber Security Industry Alliance. "Rather than saying Virginia Tech really failed, this is a good example of the types of technologies that schools should consider in the future," she said.
Increasingly, businesses are implementing a kind of 21st-century telephone tree that can quickly signal large numbers of people about emergencies via traditional and cellular phones and e-mail.
Gasster noted that on campuses, the system could be connected to a database containing home phone numbers, cell numbers and e-mail addresses of students and faculty. In the event of a disaster, officials could broadcast a voice recording with specific directions and simultaneously transmit the same message in e-mail text format.
"The problem for [reaching] students is that they don't carry BlackBerries ... but they do carry cell phones," she said. "For schools, historically they didn't have to worry about a terrorist attack ... but new threats are emerging every day."
---quickly signal large numbers of people about emergencies
Haven't these techies ever heard an air raid/civil defense siren? It would "geographically target" emergency notices and "quickly signal" EVERYONE about the emergency.
As in tornado alerts, prior training would have taught the populace to go inside, take shelter and stay there. They would know to turn to emergency radio, TV or internet sites for futher information.
Deploy the robots immediately.
They were inside. They stayed there. I'm not sure how many had the opportunity to take shelter.
The simple fact is, this happened far too quickly for many to take evasive (or defensive) measures. In fact, many who could have take defensive measures may not have because of current social acceptance of passive reaction.
If anyone was to overcome this, it would have been through immediate, overpowering, and cumulative physical response. Take the guy down; regardless of the cost. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.
Gee, do you think he might be a salesman? What would he advise as part of his lockdown, imagining that such a thing could happen instantaneously? Unless the solitary shooter is outside, he's already among the sheep.
Now consider the Beslan scenario, where a seriously planned assault takes place. The lock down guarantees them hostage/victims, information technology not with standing.
Yeah, pity more student don't have Blackberries.
Information is critical, but less so than a mindset that refuses to be a victim and doesn't rely on Big Mommy to act. There needs to be some very seriou re-thinking of the whole security plan that seems to have pervaded the public school establishment. I can dream, can't I?
Australia calling:I want my rights back by LCBrendan (140 Views)
Over the last two days, the level of sickening hypocrisy and arrant stupidity of the media has reached depths of nausea that even I did not believe were possible
Chief of these, is a cry to ban all handguns.
This, if done, will leave all the guns in the hands of those who don’t give a rats *** for the laws being clamored for.
We do not have the right to keep and bear arms in Australia
And a criminal brandishes a shotgun in our faces and robs us in broad daylight.
We do not have the right to keep and bear arms in Australia
And we are carjacked at gunpoint.
We do not have the right to keep and bear arms in Australia.
And as a bank employee, we are threatened with a gun as the bank is robbed.Or shot as we cower on the floor.
We do not have the right to keep and bear arms in Australia.
And a woman is shot to death by a maniac, in a real estate agents office.
We do not have the right to keep and bear arms in Australia.
In the future, a lunatic who got his guns from an illegal dealer on the streets stalks through an office, slaughtering anyone he sees. I may be next, as he stands there laughing, and my last wish is that I had had a gun
to shoot him instead.
But yes, all bad guns are “bad” and we have lots of gun laws to keep us safe. The government will pass lots more, and ensure we are never allowed to have a gun.
If you have the nerve to defend yourself, expect to wind up in jail when the criminal sues you.
We keep telling ourselves how safe we are, thanks to all of those gun laws...until an armed home invasion gang smashes down the front door.
Don’t let them do this to you.
P-L-E-A-A-E!
Some of those students who went to their 9am classes may have stayed away if they’d had prior warning. I’m not saying it would prevent the attack. I’m simply saying a few lives might have been saved.
But, before my very eyes, that country drifted swiftly into a liberal socialistic hell.
My own country, the USA, did not descend so swiftly, and so I stayed.
A lo-tech Smith & Wesson in capable hands could have stopped the carnage far before 32......
How soon will the video game be out? I’m sure some leftist is working on it while we speak. Millions will be made, and DNC doners they will become.
There are big speaker arrays mounted on poles that could also serve, existing tech.
And the school had a speaker truck driving around when the second round started- they could have done that at 7 or 8- “Stay indoors, report anyone who does not belong or looks suspicious (like being spattered with blood and carrying a gun).
Security companies will all be sending out press releases about their scanner/alarm/x-ray/bad thought detector for months now.
I can’t remember how many people can pass through this protal, but they secure the Super Bowl, Emmy Awards and other events where hundreds per minute have to be scanned.
Also, I don’t sell their products, own stock or have any connection. I just stumbled on to them.
Semper Fi
Well air raid sirens wouldn’t cost enough for our times. This technology they are offering will cost millions. If you are driving to class, how in the world do you get an email or IM?
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