DPS News

On Thursday, December 19, shortly before 11:30 a.m., the Department of Public Safety received a report of a deceased individual on the fifth floor of Huntington Hall. Both DPS and Syracuse Police responded to the scene.

There are no signs of foul play or suspicious activity and the Onondaga County Medical Examiner’s Office has since removed the deceased from the building. The individual was not affiliated with Syracuse University.

To report an emergency, please contact the Syracuse Police Department at 315.442.5222 or the Syracuse University Department of Public Safety at 315.443.2224. If you would like to anonymously report NON-EMERGENCY information for DPS, you can use the Silent Witness tool or the Orange Safe App.

If you or someone you know has been affected by an incident on or near campus, please know that there are resources available to you. In addition, for your safety, please review these suggested safety strategies.

This public safety information is issued for your safety in compliance with the Jeanne Clery Act.

Final exams have almost arrived and soon many of you will depart our campus for the winter break. The Department of Public Safety is reminding the University community to take the necessary steps to protect your residences and belongings before you leave.

For those of you who live on campus, please take the following steps to secure your space:
• Secure and lock all doors and windows.
• Close all curtains/blinds.
• Unplug all electrical items, except refrigerators.
• Do not give your keys out.
• Mark/engrave all items of value and keep a record including serial numbers.
• Do not leave credit cards, checkbooks, cash or other valuables readily accessible; these can be taken and used by a thief before you realize they are gone.

If you live off campus, please:
• Make your residence appear occupied; consider buying a timer that automatically turns on interior and exterior lights at a predetermined time, or when there is motion.
• Use dusk to dawn light bulbs and/or make sure your outdoor lighting is working and sufficient and contact your landlord if it is not.
• Lock sliding glass doors and place a wooden dowel or metal bar in the track of the door.
• Take anything valuable home with you, e.g. laptop computer, video game console, jewelry, etc.
• Do not leave any valuable items near windows. Take pictures of anything valuable and ensure that you have installed tracking software and documented the serial numbers of all electronic devices.
• Unplug all electrical items, except your refrigerator and timers.
• If you have a security alarm, make sure you turn it on when leaving.
• If you see anything suspicious, for on-campus, please call DPS at 315.443.2224 or use the Orange Safe app or for off-campus, call the Syracuse Police Department at 315.442.5111.

Even during the winter break, the Department of Public Safety is always working and available to you. Please do not hesitate to contact us at 315.443.2224 if you observe anything concerning. As always, our recommended safety strategies can be found on our website.

Wishing you all safe travels, a happy holiday season and a restful winter break.

Final exams have almost arrived and soon many of you will depart our campus for the winter break. The Department of Public Safety is reminding the University community to take the necessary steps to protect your residences and belongings before you leave.

For those of you who live on campus, please take the following steps to secure your space:

• Secure and lock all doors and windows.
• Close all curtains/blinds.
• Unplug all electrical items, except refrigerators.
• Do not give your keys out.
• Mark/engrave all items of value and keep a record including serial numbers.
• Do not leave credit cards, checkbooks, cash or other valuables readily accessible; these can be taken and used by a thief before you realize they are gone.

If you live off campus, please:

• Make your residence appear occupied; consider buying a timer that automatically turns on interior and exterior lights at a predetermined time, or when there is motion.
• Use dusk to dawn light bulbs and/or make sure your outdoor lighting is working and sufficient and contact your landlord if it is not.
• Lock sliding glass doors and place a wooden dowel or metal bar in the track of the door.
• Take anything valuable home with you, e.g. laptop computer, video game console, jewelry, etc.
• Do not leave any valuable items near windows. Take pictures of anything valuable and ensure that you have installed tracking software and documented the serial numbers of all electronic devices.
• Unplug all electrical items, except your refrigerator and timers.
• If you have a security alarm, make sure you turn it on when leaving.
• If you see anything suspicious, for on-campus, please call DPS at 315.443.2224 or use the Orange Safe app or for off-campus, call the Syracuse Police Department at 315.442.5111.

Even during the winter break, the Department of Public Safety is always working and available to you. Please do not hesitate to contact us at 315.443.2224 if you observe anything concerning. As always, our recommended safety strategies can be found on our website.

Wishing you all safe travels, a happy holiday season and a restful winter break.

With the holiday break quickly approaching, please take necessary action to protect your residences, offices, cubicle spaces and belongings.

For those who live and work on campus, please take the following steps to secure your personal and work space:

• Securely lock doors and windows.
• Close all curtains/blinds.
• Make sure to lock your door.
• Unplug all electrical items, except refrigerators.
• Do not leave your keys in a visible area.
• Mark/engrave all items of value and keep a record including serial numbers.
• Do not leave credit cards, checkbooks, cash or other valuables readily accessible; these can be taken and used by a thief before you know they are gone.

If you live off campus, please:
• Make your residence look occupied; consider buying a timer that automatically turns on interior and exterior lights at a predetermined time, or when there is motion.
• Be sure your outdoor lighting is working and sufficient/use dusk to dawn light bulbs.
• Lock sliding glass doors and place a wooden dowel or metal bar in the track of the door.
• Take anything valuable home with you, e.g. laptop computer, video game console, jewelry, etc.
• Do not leave any valuable items near windows. Take pictures of anything valuable and ensure you have installed tracking software and documented the serial numbers of all electronic devices.
• Unplug all electrical items, except your refrigerator and timers.
• If you have a security alarm, make sure you turn it on when leaving.
• If you are leaving your vehicle here while traveling, do not leave anything of value visibly inside the vehicle and lock all doors.
• Consider placing your bicycle indoors while you are out of town.

If you see anything suspicious, for on-campus, please call DPS at 315.443.2224 or use the Orange Safe app or for off-campus, call the Syracuse Police Department at 315.442.5111.

While many members of our community will be traveling during the break, many will remain here on campus. As a reminder, the Department of Public Safety is always working and available to you. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you observe anything concerning. As always, our recommended safety strategies can be found on our website.

Wishing you a safe, happy and restful holiday.

Syracuse University Department of Public Safety (DPS) received a FALSE report of a fire at Hendricks Chapel. Multiple agencies, including DPS, Fire and Life Safety Services, the Syracuse Police Department, the Syracuse Fire Department responded to the scene and confirmed it was a false report.

Together with the University’s law enforcement partners, DPS is investigating who is responsible for making this false report. If you have any information, please contact DPS or local police.

As a reminder, DPS responds to and investigates all calls, even those assumed to be false. Below, please find a detailed overview of how we respond to and communicate about false reports and what steps you can take to ensure MySlice has your most up-to-date information in the event DPS issues an Orange Alert.

How we respond to reported threats

When we learn of claims of a situation that lack immediate credibility (no additional calls to 911, security footage showing no abnormal behavior, etc.) on campus, our DPS officers immediately respond to the report’s location where they work swiftly to confirm the veracity of the report. When responding to these reports, DPS officers will appear on the scene as they would in the event of a confirmed threat. For example, they will respond in significant numbers so you will likely observe multiple officers on foot and several patrol cars. The officers will respond, in many cases, with their weapons drawn as is standard law enforcement protocol. The officers will conduct a canvas of the scene and once the threat is discredited, it is then that DPS will communicate broadly with our campus community.

How we communicate about confirmed and discredited threats

In the event of a confirmed emergency situation, you will receive immediate communications from DPS via the Orange Alert System. Orange Alert provides rapid notification and instructions to Syracuse University and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry students, faculty and staff. Orange Alert will communicate what the threat is and what, if any, action community members should take to as a result.

We reserve the use of this system for situations where there is an active or imminent threat of physical danger to our campus community. That is because when you receive an Orange Alert, we need you to know to take immediate action as directed. Orange Alert will leverage the following communications methods:

email
text messaging;
social media networks;
cell/landline phone calls to send a brief notice about the incident and instructions about what actions to take; and
sirens that sound on North Campus and South Campus.

After an Orange Alert message is broadcasted, more detailed follow-up information will be provided until it is determined the threat has been eliminated.

Sign up for Orange Alerts in MySlice

To receive the emergency communications, all students, faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to log in to MySlice to ensure their contact information for Orange Alert is up to date. It is important to note that to receive text message notifications your cell phone number must be designated as a mobile device.

DPS is always available to discuss our processes, protocols and how we collaborate with local, state and federal law enforcement to keep our campus community safe. Finally, remember that the Department of Public Safety is here for you 24/7 by calling 315.443.2224 or by connecting on the Orange Safe app.

Shortly after 1 p.m., the Women’s Building was evacuated due to a suspicious odor. Fire and Life Safety Services and the Syracuse Fire Department responded to the scene to assess the source of the problem. Upon completing their inspection, it was determined the odor came from an air handling unit. After isolating the source ventilating the space, Syracuse Fire Department reopened the building, and it has resumed standard operations.