University to test VT Alerts system on Friday, Sept. 28
Virginia Tech will conduct a full-scale test of its VT Alerts system on Friday, Sept. 28, on the Blacksburg campus as well as university facilities located in six regions across Virginia.
The test will occur between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
The regional notification groups cover the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine in Blacksburg, as well as education centers and institutes in Roanoke, Abingdon, Danville, Richmond, Hampton Roads and northern Virginia.
In the event of an actual emergency, individuals must be aware of their surroundings and take immediate responsibility for their personal safety and security. Initial VT Alerts messages will provide basic information on what to do. Further instructions and updates will be provided by subsequent VT Alerts messages or first responders. In-depth information, when available, will be posted to the university homepage at www.vt.edu.
The university will use multiple information delivery methods to reach students, faculty and staff because, at any given time, one form of communication might be better than another.
On Sept. 28, several VT Alerts channels will be tested, including the Virginia Tech homepage; broadcast email to all vt.edu accounts; the @vtalerts Twitter account; electronic message boards in classrooms, VT Desktop Alerts and outdoor sirens in Blacksburg only; and VT Phone Alerts.
Virginia Tech maintains six outdoor sirens that can be heard across campus as well as parts of the Town of Blacksburg adjacent to campus. The six sirens are located on Robeson Hall, on Dietrick Dining Center, on the Virginia Tech Power Plant, near the recreation fields off Southgate Drive, near the Brooks Forest Products Center off Tech Center Drive, and near Plantation Road.
VT Desktop Alerts sends a notice to your desktop or laptop computer, wherever you are as long as you are connected to the Internet. Users do not need to be on the campus to download the application or to receive the alert. However, to activate this service, the VT Desktop Alerts application must be downloaded to your computer.
VT Phone Alerts subscribers may receive text messages, phone calls to designated numbers, and/or email messages to non-university email accounts. Users will be able to identify the test message by the subject line “TEST: VT Alerts,” and phone and voice-mail messages will begin with “This is a test of the VT Alerts System.”
The message sender for emails will be VT Alerts, phone messages will come from (540) 232-1000, and text messages will be from 89361.
At the end of the message, you will be prompted to confirm receipt. For the purposes of this test, it is important for you to provide the requested confirmation, as that will be the only way the university will know if you received the message. Those who receive alerts via email will be provided a link to confirm receipt. When you click on the link, you’ll be taken to a page hosted by Everbridge, the vendor who provides the VT Phone Alerts system.
Individuals who do not have a Virginia Tech PID, but have a valid need to receive VT Phone Alerts emergency notification messages because of their relationship or proximity to the Blacksburg campus, may request a subscription through the Office of Emergency Management. Learn more about this process, by clicking here.
If you do not receive a VT Phone Alerts message during the test, and you are subscribed to this service, please visit the VT Alerts website and click on the “Manage Your Account” link to verify that your record is correct. If the information is correct, but you did not receive the message, you’re urged to contact 4Help at (540) 231-HELP (4357).
– Submitted by Virginia Tech
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