If a crisis were to affect the University, the best source of information and planning might lie in a room nestled in a maze under the DPS building.
Since Sept. 11 University officials, along with other public safety officials in the state, have been preparing UNC's Emergency Operations Center to deal with any situation facing the University.
The EOC is a multipurpose room under normal circumstances, but it is equipped to handle a variety of emergencies. The center houses technology such as fax machines, televisions, weather satellites and Internet connections.
DPS Director Derek Poarch said the center is designed to handle everything from natural disasters and gas leaks to national or international emergencies such as chemical or biological attacks or a state of domestic warfare.
He said the DPS has been keeping track of recent events to determine potential response plans for issues that might affect campus.
Poarch said he used the EOC on Sept. 11 when he and deputy director Maj. Jeff McCracken went to the room to monitor the terrorist attacks. From the center, they were able to receive the latest information about the events.
Poarch said if the University were in an emergency situation, officials from DPS, the Department of Health and Safety, the Department of Facilities Planning and University News Services would gather in the EOC to generate a response. "It gives us one central location from which to operate," Poarch said.
Poarch said security concerns kept him from discussing what specific reaction the center would have to a terrorist attack, but he said the EOC is prepared to address a variety of crisis scenarios.
Similar centers are located in each North Carolina county to coordinate reactions to crisis situations.
