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June 11, 2003

New Emergency Call Boxes in Place at ULM

Sixteen new emergency call boxes have been installed on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Monroe. The University Police oversaw the upgrade of the existing call boxes in an effort to improve the safety and welfare of ULM students, faculty and staff.

The emergency call boxes look like bright red poles with a blue light on top. The blue light is constantly lit. The poles house a phone system that connects solely to ULM Police. The police, in turn, are the only ones able to disconnect the call. When a call comes in, operators will automatically know which emergency call box the call is coming from and a light on top of the call box will strobe.

Several people on campus are noticing and praising the addition of the new red poles that have "emergency" written on the side. The call boxes were operational at the end of the spring 2003 semester.

"Safety is a concern for everyone, not just on a university campus but throughout our communities. I applaud the University for continuing to be pro-active with the addition of the new technology enhanced emergency call boxes. Our students, faculty and staff have always been a top priority, and our university will continue to pursue life-safety measures in the future to assure everyone of a safe environment," said Camile Currier, ULM Dean of Students.

"A lot of people have complained in the past about the safety on campus, but now this is a great step towards having a safer University," said student Josh Pigott, ULM Mass Communications senior. "This is a major improvement for all the students at ULM."

Eight emergency call boxes are placed in the rear of Hudson Hall, north of Madison Hall, on the northeast corner of Slater Hall, the southeast corner of Garrett by Sandel, the northwest corner of the Student Union Building, the south end of the Administration building, the west end of Stubbs, and the lot near the Northeast Campus Ministries.

Another eight are located at the rear of Sherrouse, the west side of Schultz, the infirmary, Harris Hall, Lemert Hall, south side of the chemistry building, Job Link, and the east end of Brown. The location of each box was determined by ULM police officers. The call boxes were state funded. Additional emergency phone systems are in the works for the campus.

ULM Police Chief Larry Ellerman says the call boxes are an added safety feature for campus. "If anyone ever needs assistance from the ULM police in an emergency situation it's comforting to know that help is just one push of a button away. This is just one of the many safety features we have on campus including the free escort service, foot patrol, bicycle patrol and vehicle patrol. The call boxes are tested regularly to be sure they would work in an emergency situation," said Ellerman.

A map of the new telephone locations can be found online at http://www.ulm.edu/emphones/.

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