Safety and Security

Living Together Safely

This section contains policies and information aimed at fostering a safe environment for all who live within our residential communities.  Scoll down to read the complete policy or guideline.

Bathrooms
Egress
Fire Alarms
Fire Extinguishers, Sprinklers, and Other Fire Fighting Equipment
Fire Safety
Safety Tips
Security
Thefts and Break-ins

Bathrooms
All residence hall bathrooms are secured with key- access to residents.  Doors are closed and locked for hall security and safety reasons.

Egress
Obstruction  North Carolina fire safety codes prohibit the obstruction of hallways and stairwells.  The Durham Fire Marshall mandates the immediate removal of all items obstructing hallways and stairwells. RLHS will remove without warning or reimbursement furniture, bicycles, lumber and all other items found obstructing hallways or stairwells. University furniture will be removed from hallways and stairwells and you will be charged for any missing furniture when you vacate your room. In addition, access to windows as a secondary means of egress is required.

Fire Alarms
To further assure life safety, fire alarm systems are located in each residence hall to alert the occupants in case of fire. Residents must comply with all fire alarms/drills. Failure to evacuate may result in disciplinary action. Activating/reporting false alarms or tampering with the alarm system is strictly prohibited.

When the Fire Alarm sounds:

• Close all windows and (leave the overhead light ON.)
• Before opening any door, feel the door. If it is HOT, do not open it. If it is not hot, brace yourself against the door, open it slightly, and if heat or heavy smoke are present, close the door and stay in your room.
• If you cannot leave the room, open the window, hang a sheet or other light colored object out the window to attract the attention of emergency personnel and then close the window. If there is a phone in the room, call Campus Police (911) and report that you are trapped. Remain calm and give your room number and building location.  Stuff towels, sheets, or similar materials under all doors leading into corridors. Stay close to the floor if smoke enters the room.
• If conditions allow you to leave the room, close, but do not lock, the door and walk directly to the nearest exit and leave the building.
• If you are away from your room when the alarm sounds, do not return to your room, but leave the building via the nearest exit.
• DO NOT use elevators. If hallways and/or exit stairwells are not accessible because of heavy smoke, return to your room, close the door and follow the instructions given above.
• If you have exited the facility, stand clear of the building and report to your designated check-in area. Emergency apparatus may be maneuvering around the building.
• Follow the directions of fire and police personnel and NEVER re-enter the building until they give permission to do so.
  

Fire Extinguishers, Sprinklers, and Other Fire Fighting Equipment 
Fire extinguishers are located in all residence halls. The presence of this equipment can help quickly control fires, thereby avoiding injury or loss of life. Relocating, removing, tampering with, or destroying fire-fighting equipment is strictly prohibited. Damage and/or theft of fire equipment also is punishable  under North Carolina state law.

Fire Safety
In the event of a fire, the most important thing is for you to evacuate the building safely.  Make sure you familiarize yourself with the evacuation instructions posted throughout the residence halls and with the evacuation floor plan posted on your hall.

If you discover a fire or smoke situation, activate the fire alarm pull station and call, or have someone call, Campus Police at 911.

If you feel comfortable doing so, use a fire extinguisher to control or extinguish the fire while emergency personnel are in route to your location.

Report all fires and smoke to Duke University Police Department by dialing 911 from any campus phone. Fires that have been extinguished should also be reported to Duke Police so that an investigation may be conducted. All fires should subsequently also be reported to your Hall Staff.

In the corridors of each residence hall there are fire extinguishers, fire alarm pull stations, and automatic smoke detectors. The manual alarms and automatic detectors will each cause an alarm to sound in the building and at the Duke University Police Department. Jarvis, Aycock, Epworth, Blackwell, Randolph, Keohane, Bell Tower, and the renovated sections of Kilgo have sprinkler systems located in corridors and bedrooms.

Keohane and the renovated sections of  Kilgo  Quads, Bell Tower, Blackwell, and Randolph are equipped with direct wired AC-powered  smoke detectors. All residence halls are equipped with battery powered smoke detectors in student bedrooms. In order to ensure that the smoke detector and/or battery are functional, push the button on the detector for 30 to 60 seconds to test it. For your protection, periodically push this test button throughout your occupancy. Contact your RLHS Campus Office immediately should the smoke detector fail to sound its alarm when the test button is pushed. The smoke detector will begin to beep at one minute intervals to warn of battery weakness.  Contact your RLHS Campus Office immediately to request the installation of a new battery, but DO NOT remove the detector from its bracket.

If a bedroom smoke detector alarms due to smoke from a fire, immediately go to the fire alarm pull station in the corridor and activate the building fire alarm. Follow posted evacuation instructions.  Close the windows and door, dial 911, and evacuate the building.

The smoke detector's alarm may falsely sound when there is a high concentration of cigarette smoke, cooking smoke, dust or other particles in the air. Should this happen, open the windows and fan the detector until the it stops sounding its alarm and notify your Residence Assistant and neighbors that you do not have a fire.

All residence halls are equipped with electromagnetic locks on some of the exterior and/or interior doors. These door locks are designed to open only in the event of an emergency or power failure. Activation of the building fire alarm system via a manual pull station or an automatic corridor smoke detector will automatically release the magnets and unlock all the electromagnetically locked doors in the building. Once the magnet releases, you may then push the panic bar to open the door.

False alarms, damage, theft, or misuse of fire detection, alarm  or extinguishing equipment are punishable under the criminal law provision  of the North Carolina Statute 14-286 and may result in the loss of  housing  privileges and/or action by the undergraduate judicial system. In addition, residents  will be charged for fire damage resulting from neglect or intentional  actions.

Contact your insurance company immediately in the event of fire. Photographs, charges, and the Duke University Police report will be made available upon request. Damage to fire equipment in bedrooms is the responsibility of  the  individual residents. Damage to fire equipment in the public areas is the living group's responsibility.

Do your part to protect lives and property by safeguarding fire safety equipment from abuse and by immediately reporting any missing or malfunctioning equipment to your RLHS Campus Office.

Safety Tips
No university can guarantee the safety of its students. It is therefore recommended that students exercise caution at all times. It is recommended that students avoid isolated areas. 684-SAFE (684-7233) may be called to request Duke escort services from dusk to dawn. Some important safety tips:

1. Do not walk, jog, or bike alone unless in well-populated areas.
2. Keep your room and apartment door locked at all times, whether or not you are present.
3. All exterior doors should be kept locked.
4. Do not allow others to "tailgate" into a secured building behind you.
5. Contact Duke University Police Department immediately, 911 or 684-2444, in the event of any incident that threatens safety or appears suspicious.
6. Become familiar with the locations of campus "Help" phones and use them if you need assistance of any kind.
   

Security
All residence halls are locked 24 hours. The residence halls are equipped with:

• DukeCard readers that allow the residents to use their DukeCards to gain access.
• Electromagnetic locks on certain exterior doors that limit usage to emergency egress only.
• Exterior telephone with Telekey at main entry doors.
• All bathrooms are equipped with automatic locks and closers that keep the doors locked at all times, and that require residents to use issued keys or DukeCards to enter the bathrooms.
• All bedroom doors are equipped with door viewers.
• Residence hall windows that can be used to enter the building are equipped with window pins, security screens, or other devices intended to prevent entry.
• Lighting on the exterior of the residence halls is controlled by timers or photocells which automatically turn the lights on or off based on the natural light levels or day/ night hours. RLHS monitors the exterior lighting on and around the residence halls.
  

Please contact your RLHS Campus Office and Hall Staff to report problems or to offer suggestions for residence hall safety and security features.  It is essential that you actively participate in  making your house a safe  and  secure place for yourself and your fellow residents to live:

• Do not prop outside doors open. Close them if you find them propped.
• Do not allow people you do not know to follow you into your house. If they have a legitimate reason to be in your house, their DukeCard will let them in or they can use the phone equipped with Telekey.
• Do keep your bedroom door locked at all times - when you are there and when you are not.
• Do keep security screens latched at all times.
• Do immediately report a lost key to your RLHS Campus Office.
• Do immediately report a lost DukeCard to the DukeCard Office  (684-5800).
• Do immediately report doors that do not close and lock, lights that do not work, or any other security problem.
• Do report to Duke University Police the presence of strangers in your house.  Please contact your RLHS Campus Office for more information, to report problems, to offer suggestions, or to discuss any security concerns you may have.
  

Thefts and Break-ins
Report any thefts or break-ins to Duke University Police by calling 684-2444. Lock your room even if you are only going down the hall. Theft is most often a crime of opportunity. It only takes a few seconds for a thief to take thousands of dollars worth of personal property. The University is not liable for damage or loss of personal property, including property left in commons rooms. Because the University does not provide insurance, occupants are encouraged to provide their own personal property insurance.