UC Public Safety increases speed, efficiency of tornado alerts

The University of Cincinnati Public Safety Department recently improved the campus emergency alert system to allow for automatic tornado warnings, immediately upon issuance by the National Weather Service.

Advance notice can be crucial in these situations, so the Public Safety Department implemented a system to forward the alerts as quickly as possible.

Automatic alerts will only be sent for tornado warnings, not tornado watches or severe thunderstorm warnings. A “watch,” according to the National Weather Service, is issued when tornados are possible in and near the watch area, whereas a “warning” means that a tornado has been sighted or is indicated by weather radar.

When there is a warning in the area, all members of the campus community should move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building away from windows. If you are outside, in a mobile home or in a vehicle, you should move to the closest substantial shelter. Severe weather shelter locations can be found on Public Safety’s website.

The alerts will come via email, text message and a push notification on the Bearcat Guardian App, and they will be posted to Public Safety’s Twitter page. They will say something similar to the following, “UC Alert: Tornado Warning Hamilton County issued July 2 at 4:51PM EDT until July 2 at 5:30PM EDT by the NWS Wilmington OH.”

The alerts encompass both Clermont and Hamilton counties. If there is a tornado warning in both counties at the same time, the community will receive two separate alerts, one for each county.

If you are a student, check your Catalyst account and make sure all fields are filled out to ensure you receive alerts. If you are a faculty or staff member, go into your online directory account and make sure you clicked “yes” when asked if you would like to be notified of campus emergencies.

Additional information about tornado procedures can be found in the Emergency Management section of Public Safety's website.