UCM Warrensburg, Lee’s Summit Participate in Statewide Tornado Drill March 3

By Jeff Murphy, February 27, 2020

WARRENSBURG, MO – The University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg will participate in a statewide tornado drill at 10 a.m. Tuesday, March 3. This drill is expected to last about 15 minutes, and is designed to orient faculty, staff and students in appropriate measures to take during a real tornadic event.

To help prepare the campus community prior to the drill, the UCM Department of Public Safety and the Office of Environmental Health and Safety is encouraging faculty members and supervisors to share information about the drill with students and colleagues. UCM realizes that conducting such a drill may be disruptive to everyone’s daily schedule, but the institution’s responsibility to protect our campus community cannot be over emphasized. UCM will attempt to keep all disruption to a minimum.

UCM’s participation in the drill is part of a statewide effort. Should the state experience severe weather on the day of the drill, the event will be postponed until a later date.  During the event, the Warrensburg campus will be notified by the UCM outdoor warning system, building public address, and through TextCaster text message alerts.

Anyone who has not signed up for this free service is encouraged to visit ucmo.edu/textcaster to learn more and sign up for the service. Individuals who have changed their mobile telephone provider since signing up for TextCaster are encouraged to sign up again to ensure they receive alerts.

During the drill, participants should immediately go to an indoor shelter and proceed to the lowest floor of the building, preferably an interior room or hallway, away from glass. Designated shelter areas on the Warrensburg campus are identified on building emergency plans which are posted near hallways and staircases throughout campus facilities.  Individuals should remain in the shelter area until the drill is concluded. The message noting “This concludes the annual tornado drill” will be provided via TextCaster signifying the end of the exercise.

Learn more about the statewide tornado drill by visiting the Missouri Storm Aware website at stormaware.mo.gov/alerts/.