Today, Feb. 21: Homewood campus emergency alert systems test

Homewood Campus Safety and Security will conduct a test of the campus siren/public address system and the Johns Hopkins Rave Alert text messaging system at 1 p.m. today, Tuesday, Feb. 21. The test will be a full-scale simultaneous activation of both systems.

The siren/PA system, which is activated by radio signal from the Homewood Communication Center, consists of speakers on Garland Hall, Whitehead Hall, and the O'Connor Recreation Center. The sirens will simultaneously sound an alert tone and then sequentially broadcast a voice message announcing, "This is a test of the Homewood campus emergency warning system."

Those who have subscribed to the Rave Emergency text message system will receive a brief message that reads, "JHU: THERE IS NO EMERGENCY. This is a test from The Johns Hopkins University. Had there been an actual emergency, additional information would follow."

Shortly after the public address broadcast, an all-clear alert tone will sound, followed by a message saying, in part, "This has been a test of the Homewood campus emergency warning system. Had there been an actual emergency, you would have been given specific instructions on what to do."

Because the public address system incorporates a silent self-test feature that exercises each module on a weekly basis, Campus Safety and Security schedules "live" tests only three times a year. The main purpose of the exercise is to familiarize the Homewood community with the sound of the system.

Except for these periodic tests, the system will be used only in the event of a confirmed incident that presents an immediate danger to the Homewood campus. If you have not yet subscribed to the Rave text message alerts, go to: http://my.jh.edu and sign in using your JHED ID and password. Click on the "myProfile" icon in the upper-left-hand side of the page, then click on the "Emergency Alerts" link on the right.