If a hurricane hits Medford, students can be sure there will be an ample supply of chicken grillas.
At last weekend's Board of Trustees meeting, Public and Environmental Safety Director John King spoke to the administration and finance committee about the University's Crisis Management Plan.
First created in 1997, the plan has been given more attention in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. "Katrina prompted us to take a new look," University President Lawrence Bacow said.
Bacow asked King to review the plan, which has gone through several versions. The plan was updated after the summer of 2002, when two major Massachusetts Electric cables failed, leaving Medford and Tufts without power six times. No changes have been made since the hurricane.
After the power failures, King said, the University created a committee to assess how the University should have handled the situation. A consultant was hired to help unify the University's disaster plan across all the schools and departments.
As part of the updated plan, the University integrated emergency communications software into its systems.
In addition to personnel, King said, the University can acquire radios, buses and hotel rooms on short notice. Each of the dining halls always has a three to five day supply of food on hand, he said.
Several buildings have their own electricity generators if the power should fail, and the University can get more generators if it needs them. The University initially struggled to get more generators after the power outages because of federal emissions restrictions.
According to King, Tufts has five crisis teams: one for Bacow and his advisers, one for each of the three campuses and one for the study abroad programs. Each team consists of "key individuals who would be expected to assemble and determine the appropriate course of action," King said.
In the event of a disaster of catastrophic proportions, King said, the plan includes a list of resources that could be transferred between the 15 schools in the Boston Consortium, of which Tufts is a member.
The Tufts University Police Department has conducted joint disaster preparedness training programs with the Medford and Somerville departments.
Tufts officers receive eight hours of training on weapons of mass destruction, King said, so they are prepared in the event of a biological or chemical attack.
Most officers are not aware of the specifics of the plan, King said, but they are prepared for any emergency. Officers have staged emergency simulations to increase preparedness.
Health Services has also done preparedness exercises. Personnel recently looked into how the University would respond if several students came down with meningitis.
King said he is planning a discussion on the course of action in the event of an avian flu outbreak.
It would be difficult to place a dollar value on the Crisis Management Plan, King said, because each school and department uses its own budget to finance emergency contingency plans. The cost of implementing the plan also depends on the type and magnitude of the emergency.
Tufts has a head start on other schools, King said. "Some schools are just getting off the ground."
Though the Tufts plan has not been updated because of Katrina - the climate in the Northeast makes a large hurricane unlikely - Bacow said the plan is still worth having.
"It's always better to be prepared," he said.
