Emergency Notifications and Information
The safety of the University of Maryland community during an emergency is predicated on advance planning, as well as building awareness about how the plans will be implemented.
Students, faculty, staff and visitors will be better prepared in an emergency if they know how the University will respond, where they can find information, and what they should do. Please take a moment to learn more about our Emergency Notification Systems.
UMD Alerts System
The UMD Alerts System is a mass, urgent notification system, comprising a variety of methods through which the University notifies students, faculty and staff of an active, major campus emergency. In addition to the UMD Alerts website, alerts are also sent by text and email. (If you are not automatically receiving them or would like to update your preferences, simply login and update your UMD Alerts profile.) Alerts provide timely information such as timing, location, incident type, and whether other police agencies are involved. Based on the information available, they are often followed by updates in order to keep the campus community informed.
Early Warning Siren
Siren Tones
Emergencies: A steady tone that will sound for at least three minutes.
All Clear: One short blast that will sound for less than 30 seconds.
Siren Testing
Siren Testing is conducted the first Wednesday of each month at 11:55 am.
The sirens will be loud enough to alert the entire university and areas contiguous to the university where many in our community live and study.
Other Campus Notification Resources
In the event of an emergency, severe weather or other issues impacting campus, information about closures and other changes to operations and links to any relevant resources will be posted on umd.edu, and shared through the UMD Alerts System. Information about operational impacts will also be available by calling 301-405-SNOW (7669) and will be posted on X/Twitter (@UofMaryland).