UNC hopes classroom posters will help in case of emergencies

The university is posting the signs in classrooms across campus after confusion last fall when it activated emergency sirens twice in one day for separate tornado warnings.

Chief Jeff McCracken, director of UNC's Public Safety Department, said in an article posted on UNC's website that the confusion had to do with the timing of the sirens, which was near the beginning or end of classes.

It was also the first time the sirens were used for a real potential emergency, he said.

The posters outline what to do when the sirens sound for a significant emergency or immediate health or safety threat.

The university cites violence at Virginia Tech last month and other campuses as another factor for the posters and for the need to know what to do before an emergency happens.

Heightened campus security and safety isn't new for the school. In 2008, it implemented the Alert Carolina emergency notification system as a way to quickly inform faculty and students about campus threats.

The system came on heels of another shooting in at Virginia Tech in 2007, in which 32 people were killed.