Marshall Emergency Alerts: A blessing or a curse?

The city of Huntington has had an uptick in shootings over the past two months. As a result, Marshall University has been under fire by the public and its students over the topic of campus security. The Push Alert text notifications are a main source of emergency alert for students and some expressed that they don’t think that’s enough.

Marshall Police Department Chief Jim Terry wants students to know that the alerts are there for your protection and says that it is better to be safe rather than sorry when it comes to crime.

“If it’s a danger to you, a threat to you, a threat to this campus, we will let you know,” said Chief Terry.

There is a strict process that violent information has to go through before it is sent out as an alert to the students and faculty. If every call that came in was sent out as an alert, recipients would stop looking at them and not be able to decipher when they should truly be worried.      

“We make those decisions based on where it happened and do we have any information on which way they fled,” said Chief Terry.

While this rising crime in Huntington can seem daunting, MUPD emphasizes that the violent crimes are not happening on the campus itself and usually not even within a block or two of campus.                             

“Marshall’s campus is the safest 100 acres in the city,” said Terry.  “If you aren’t involved in things you shouldn’t be, then the crime will not seek you out, which is the case for most students.”

The alert system has seven categories that it will send out an alert for if the situation calls for it. These alerts range could be any violent crime including armed robbery, shootings, stabbings, or anything that could potentially be a major threat to a student in the immediate campus area.

“We don’t want to send people into a panic, but we don’t believe that ignorance is bliss either. There has to be verification in these alerts,” said Chief Terry.

The system has been in place for many years now and has proven to do more good than harm. While the alerts don’t stop students from going out in the area, it does have the potential to make them more aware of their surroundings.

“I’ve watched students get the alerts and they immediately continue on with what they are doing, people are creatures of habit,” said Chief Terry.

The next time someone questions the alerts, whether they want to know why there are too many or not enough, MUPD’s mission is just to assure students that as long as they do what they can to be aware, then the law enforcement will be able to help them if needed.