Emergency Information

• Fire Safety Handbook
  This resource contains general fire prevention tips and emergency procedures for the entire campus, as well as a section focused on fire prevention in our student residential facilities.

• Open Flame Regulations
  This document provides mandatory procedures for those who plan to burn an open flame and/or recreational fire pit on campus grounds.

An active assailant situation is an intruder enters a building or campus grounds and threatens the personal safety and welfare of our students, faculty, staff and guests. These are the characteristics of such a situation:

• Involves one or more suspect(s) who, as police respond to the scene, are actively killing or causing serious, life-threatening bodily injury to multiple victims.
• The overriding objective of the suspect(s) appears to be that of mass murder, rather than other criminal conduct such as robbery or hostage-taking.
• Such a threat is not immediately contained and there is immediate risk of death and injury.
• Considered the greatest threat to a campus community.
• Leaves little or no time for proper planning and requires law enforcement to take immediate action
• Active assailant situations can and often develop into hostage situations upon the arrival of law enforcement.

On a national level, active assailant situations have increased and are becoming ever more serious threats to any facility that is open to the public, including colleges and universities. Events such as these are usually unpredictable and evolve rapidly, demanding response decisions that can be influenced by a number of different variables. Therefore, it is very important that faculty, staff and students immediately report any potentially threatening persons that they see anywhere on campus that appear to be armed. This is true even if the person is not currently engaged in an act of violence and would include anyone armed with a bladed instrument such as a large knife, sword, machete or firearm of any kind. Call 402.280.2911 for Public Safety.

Would you know what to do?
Watch these safety videos:

View larger version here.

View larger version here.

How to react to an active assailant situation on campus

Make a decision, trusting your instincts, to take action to protect yourself to survive the situation. You generally will have three options:
Run: Can you safely escape?
Hide: Is there a good place to hide?
Fight: Will you take out the assailant?
 

Run for safety

• If you can and you deem it safe, get out and get to a safe place.
• You will have to rely partially on instinct.
• Leave belongings behind, but take your cell phone if it is handy.

 Hide in a safe place

• Find a hidden location.
• Find protection behind furniture if possible.
• Find a room that locks if you can.
• If possible, close and lock the outside door to the room. Blockade the door with furniture or other heavy objects.
• Close the blinds, turn off the lights, remain quiet, silence cell phones, spread out away from other individuals, and move behind available cover.
• Stay on the floor, away from doors or windows, and do not peek out to see what may be happening.
• Make a plan with others in the room about what you will do if the assailant enters. Make a total commitment to action and act as a team with others.
• Do whatever is necessary to survive the situation.
• If possible and safe to do so, report the location of the assailant.

If outside when an active assailant situation occurs:

• Be prepared to drop to the ground or run to a safe place for cover.
• Move or crawl away from gunfire, trying to utilize any obstructions between you and the gunfire. Remember that many objects of cover may conceal you from sight, but may not be bulletproof.
• When you reach a place of relative safety, stay down and do not move. Do not peek or raise your head in an effort to see what may be happening.

If suspect is in close proximity:

• An individual must use his/her own discretion about when he or she must engage an assailant for survival.
• Make a plan as to how you will survive the situation.
• Make a total commitment to action and act as a team with others if possible.
• Do whatever is necessary to survive the situation.

Help out

• Warn others.
• Help others escape.
• Keep others away from the danger area.
• Help the injured.
• Help others stay calm.

Calling for help

• Call 911 or 280.2911 (Public Safety) to report the incident to the appropriate authorities. Do not assume that someone else has reported the incident. Be persistent; phones may be jammed.
• Calmly identify yourself and your exact location. Remain calm and answer the dispatcher's questions. The dispatcher is trained to obtain the necessary and required information for an appropriate emergency response.
• If safe to do so, stop and take time to get a good description of the criminal. Note height, weight, sex, race, approximate age, clothing, method and direction of travel, and his/her name, if known.
• If the suspect is entering a vehicle, note the license plate number, make and model, color, and outstanding characteristics. All of this takes only a few seconds and is of the utmost help to the responding officers.

WHEN LAW ENFORCEMENT ARRIVES

• When law enforcement reaches you, do not run at them or make sudden movements.
• The priority of the first responders will be to identify the assailant. Law Enforcement will need to ensure that you are not the assailant.
• Do not scream, yell, point, or wave your arms.
• Do not hold anything in your hands that could be mistaken for a weapon (including cell phones).
• Be quiet and compliant.
• Show the officers your empty hands and follow their instructions.
• Give the number of assailants.
• Give the location and physical description of the assailant.
• Give the number and types of weapons.
• When it is safe to do so, you will be given instructions as to how to safely exit your location. 

What is "Shelter-in-Place"?

Shelter-in-place refers to the need to remain where you are for your own safety. Employees and students generally cannot be forced to shelter-in-place; however, there are circumstances when university officials and emergency personnel will order that everyone must stay where they are for their own safety and well-being. You should consider how and where to shelter-in-place prior to having to take this measure.

A shelter-in-place order may be issued for several reasons, including:

• Severe weather
• Hazardous materials
• Intruder on campus
• Hostage situation
• Any situation where it is best for you to stay where you are to avoid a threat

The reason for the shelter-in-place order may not be immediately communicated to everyone. If a shelter-in-place order is issued:

1. Stay alert for instructions and updates as they become available from the emergency personnel and university administrators.
2. If class is in session, do not allow any students to leave, if possible.
3. If you are in other buildings such as dorms, have everyone remain there.
4. Remain calm and attempt to keep other calm.
5. Stay away from windows, doors, and outside walls.
6. Remain in the shelter until told everything is all clear by emergency personnel. Do not leave until you are sure of the identity or source of the person making the announcement.

If you become aware of an intruder:

• Secure doors if possible and get out of sight, away from doors and windows.
• Turn the lights off and close any blinds or curtains.
• If you are not able to lock the door for any reason, attempt to barricade the door with furniture without endangering or injuring yours.

Follow these emergency procedures in the event of a tornado warning or severe storm warning. Familiarize yourself with the locations of storm shelters in the buildings you frequent before an emergency.

• Go to the lowest level of the building, away from windows and into an interior room or hallway.
• If you are outdoors, go indoors to the lowest level of a building. If you are unable to reach shelter, lie flat in a ditch or low spot and cover your head with your hands.
• Remain in the storm shelter and monitor a weather radio or cell phone until the storm warning has expired.
• If you are injured or need help, call Public Safety at 402.280.2911 for emergency assistance.

AED and Stop the Bleed Kit Locations

Creighton's Department of Public Safety takes the health and safety of all community members and guests seriously. When patrolling the campus or responding to calls, each of the Public Safety vehicles is equipped with an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) and a stop-the-bleed (STB) kit. An AED is a device that automatically analyzes the heart rhythm and, if it detects a problem that may respond to an electrical shock, that permits a shock to be delivered to restore a normal heart rhythm. An STB kit a specialized first aid kit designed to help control severe bleeding in emergency situations

Officers are annually trained on how to operate these life-savings tools in an emergency. See a list of where AEDs and stop-the-bleed kits are located. 

The Department of Public Safety dispatcher is available 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. To report an incident, request assistance, or ask a question, please call using one of these numbers:

Emergency Line: 402.280.2911

Business Line: 402.280.2104

Add these numbers to your phone contacts!

To report an incident in person, visit the Public Safety office in the Schneider Building at 2222 Burt Street. Visitors to Public Safety can park in Lot 38, which is located on the west side of 23rd Street, just north of Burt Street. There is always someone on duty at this location to assist the Creighton community. Tell Someone allows members of the Creighton community to express concern for a fellow member of the Creighton community. Users must log-in with their Blue credentials to use the secure report form or call the Tell Someone reporting phone line at 402.280.4400. Tell Someone should not be used to report an emergency—any emergency should immediately be reported to the Department of Public Safety at 402.280.2911. For more information on Tell Someone, please visit www.creighton.edu/safety