By Shelia Watson
Contributing Writer

Thursday’s shooting incident on the Northern Illinois University campus, which ended with seven students dead, including the gunman, and more than a dozen wounded, is a prime example of the need for an emergency responder system like the one being implemented at Claflin University in Orangeburg.

The Emergency Management Operating System will be implemented as a three-month pilot program at the university. The program, known as EMOS, was developed by Terra Image USA, a company that specializes in geospatial information, and is being executed by the South Carolina Research Authority through its National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center, Southeast Region.

Claflin is one of two universities in the nation trying out the system. The other is Kent State University in Ohio. If the trial is successful, the program could be implemented at colleges and universities across the country, according to SCRA program administrator Dee Williams.

The EMOS will not be used at Claflin if an emergency event occurs during the three-month trial period due to its test status. Williams noted that mock scenarios will be used to gauge the system’s effectiveness.

Prior to a demonstration of the program, NLECTC Director Al Johnson showed clips of how law enforcement handled the 1999 Columbine High School shooting.

“The problem was that nobody knew where anybody else was,” Johnson said. “The good guys didn’t know where the bad guys were or even where the other good guys were. The problem, in a word, was communication, or a lack thereof.”

Last April, when a gunman killed 32 people and wounded several others on the campus of Virginia Tech, the failure by officials to notify people of the gunman on campus was considered a primary reason for the large number of fatalities.

“When the responders arrived (at Virginia Tech), they ‘red-balled’ it out of their vehicles and got into position, and then they just waited,” he said. “When no one tells you where the bad guys are, there’s nothing else you can do.”

Johnson insisted that in each case, law enforcement did the best they could under the circumstances.

“I have 33 years in law enforcement, and I can tell you that nothing can prepare you for a situation like that,” he said. “Nevertheless, we have to strive to do better than what we’re doing.”

The EMOS is a step in that direction, he said.

“Technology is not the problem, but it has a role in the solution,” he said.

The Internet-based EMOS organizes information geographically with GPS-enabled cell phones, satellite maps and interactive voice-response modules in real time. The program helps agencies target a potential threat as well as warn individuals via an early notification system.

If a critical incident occurs on campus, the system enables Claflin University, Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Department and Orangeburg Police Department officials to respond with efficient planning, management and decision-making.

In addition to the EMOS, Claflin is enrolled in another pilot program courtesy of the U.S. Department of the Navy that sends in robots instead of people to assess dangerous situations. Navy specialists are on hand at the university to train the police department to use the laptop-controlled robots. The robots can climb stairs and provide video feedback, which helps officials assess a situation without endangering human lives.