CBU conducts Fire Drill on Campus

Many students on campus were surprised to receive an email via CBU alerts around 10 a.m on November 16th; asking them to vacate the classrooms to the nearest assembly points as part of a fire drill. For majority of the Capers, especially for those who joined the community this fall, a fire drill was a new experience. Some of them panicked as they were unable to comprehend what was going on, while others tried to explain the drill to their peers who have not had the chance to experience the same. Approximately 7 minutes after the alert was sent out, the firefighters were already on campus to look into the matter and an all-clear message was soon sent out, permitting students to return to classes. “I was surprised and was not sure what I should do when I got the alert, but luckily the fire wardens helped me move to the emergency assembly area.”, said Shoizer Saju, a first semester student at CBU.

Caper Times reached out to Sonya Spencer, the Campus Security services manager, who filled us in on the details regarding the exercise. She explained that fire drills in CBU, are usually held once a year, mostly in November, and are required by provincial guidelines. Sonya also mentioned that the fire marshal oversees these fire drills and Walter Mersereau in Facilities Management was the fire marshal for this drill. Fire drills are common, especially in large buildings and they help in evaluating the efficiency of the fire and safety measures implemented on the sites. Sonya also added that she will be taking over from Walter as the new fire marshal as the latter has decided to step away from his role.

In the event of an actual incident, students, and staff on campus should follow the directions and head to the nearest exit and proceed toward the nearest emergency assembly area. The Directions are posted throughout the campus and CT encourages you to study them when you pass one.

In the meantime, make sure that you have subscribed to the CBU alerts email system (link here) and are receiving the alerts. Stay safe CAPERS!