Univ-Alert: The Campus Emergency Notification System
The Campus Emergency Notification System utilizes four different methods of disseminating information to the campus community; Message Blaster, bulk mail, Univ-Closing-l, and the Special Conditions web page.
"Message Blaster" is used for urgent communications where a large number of people need to receive the information as quickly as possible. Message Blaster sends email to the Cornell NetIDs of Cornell faculty, staff, students, and others in the Cornell community. This system will be used very sparingly, that is, only for events of a truly critical and urgent nature such as closing of the university or a widespread threat to life safety.
Message Blaster makes emergency messages available to the vast majority of the Cornell community but given the limitations of email distribution, we cannot guarantee that everyone will receive these messages. Whether you receive these messages depends on how you receive your mail:
- If you retrieve your mail from one of the University's central mail postoffice servers (i.e. postoffice, postoffice2, etc.) and you use POP to receive your mail, you will receive the announcements. If you are using Eudora to retrieve your mail, and it is configured as it comes with Bear Access, you fall into this category.
- If you retrieve your mail using Travelers Mail, Web E-mail, or using an IMAP mail client, you will not currently receive these messages. Systems staff in CIT are working to resolve this so that IMAP users will receive the announcements.
- If you use a departmental or college mail server, or an off-campus mail service (such as HotMail or AOL), you will receive these messages only if that is the only address listed as your preferred mail account in WhoIAm, ( http://whoiam.cornell.edu/email/email.cgi ). If you list both your postoffice account and another account in WhoIAm, the message will only be sent to your postoffice mail account and will not be sent to the other account.
See your desktop support provider or call the CIT Help Desk (5-8990) if you need additional help with email configuration or forwarding. Please note that you cannot ask to be exempted from these messages. The technology that makes it possible to reach so many campus email addresses so quickly does not allow for the exclusion of individual addresses. Questions or comments on the Campus Emergency Notification System can be sent to: univ-alert@cornell.edu.
"Bulk Mail" is used to distribute to emergency messages a large number of people or a select audience (faculty / staff / student) where the time-frame is not as critical. The same email configuration considerations that apply to Message Blaster also apply to the bulk mail that may be sent out.
Univ-Closing-L is used to distribute information of a timely but less critical nature to an "opt-in" audience. Messages sent to this list would contain information similar to road closings, bus schedule changes, and emergency situations that may not affect the entire university.
For instructions for subscribing to this mailing list, please go to:
http://www.aff.cornell.edu/subscribe.htmlThe "Special Conditions" web page displays most of the messages sent via Message Blaster, bulk mail, or Univ-Closing-L at:
http://cuinfo.cornell.edu/SpecialConditions/
Further updates to the emergencies and special conditions are provided on this web page.
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Listed below are a number of other ways by which you may choose to be alerted to various special campus or community circumstances, such as university status changes, closings, power outages, road closings, bus schedule changes, severe weather warnings, and other emergency situations.
Mailing lists
Important information of a less critical nature is distributed by electronic mailing lists to which members of the campus community can subscribe:
The IT Alert List: CIT-Alert-L is used to announce serious disruptions or threats to the campus computing and telecommunications environment, including major outages of CIT services.
The School Closings List: School-Closing-L informs parents electronically about mid-day closings. Participating school systems are: Candor, Cortland, Dryden, Groton, Ithaca, Lansing, Moravia, Newfield, Spencer, Trumansburg, and Watkins Glen.
For general help with subscribing to mailing lists, see:
http://www.aff.cornell.edu/subscribe.html-------------------------------------------
Information on the World Wide Web:
The University Operating Status Web Page:
http://www.info.cornell.edu/CUHomePage/Status.htmlThe Network Status Web Page contains information about any current problems with the network and computing systems maintained by CIT:
http://www.cit.cornell.edu/net-cgi/statesThese web sites, as well as the Special Conditions webpage, are accessible from the CUinfo home page:
http://cuinfo.cornell.edu/The University has a central emergency plan that outlines the emergency management structure and priorities. Individuals should talk to their department’s emergency coordinator to learn the unit specific emergency procedures. The Emergency Planning web site contains information for individuals and departments to aid them in preparing for emergencies: http://web.cornell.edu/Emergency/
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Informational Audix Bulletin Boards:
University Operating Status & Inclement Weather Phone: 255-3377
Transportation information:
TCAT: 254-6790
Chemung/Schuyler County Transit: 254-6791
Cortland Transit: 254-6792
Tioga County Public Transit: 254-6793
Transportation Services: 254-6794
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Radio and TV stations that will be notified for broadcast announcements of closings and emergencies: http://web.cornell.edu/Emergency/radio-tv.htm
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Cornell University Police:
911 - FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY! Please do not call for traffic, weather, or university operating status information.
255-1111 — Cornell Police for non-emergency calls.