Emergency Management

A member of Campus Life Safety and Regulatory Compliance checking the fire panel

Columbia University Irving Medical Center's Emergency Management Operations Team (EMOT) is committed to emergency preparedness, trained in emergency response, and ready to guide the campus during emergencies.

  • CUIMC EMOT comprises senior leadership from across the medical center and its affiliated institutions, with representatives from administrative, public safety, and academic operations.
  • The team meets periodically to review and update the Emergency Management Plan. The team may also run emergency drills to assess the campus’s readiness for and response to potential emergencies.
  • In the event of an emergency, EMOT works closely with key University and NewYork-Presbyterian partners to provide information to our community, the news media, and the public.

 

Make a Plan. Stay Prepared.

We've compiled a few helpful tips to help you get started with creating your own emergency plan. 

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How to Stay Updated During an Emergency

  • Sign up to receive emergency text message alerts and emails from Public Safety at myColumbia. Only numbers listed under the "Campus Alert" fields will receive emergency text messages. "Mobile" and "CU Mobile" will not.
  • Call the CUIMC Advisory Hotline at 212-305-7300 to hear voice message updates. This hotline is only activated when there is an institution-wide emergency.
  • See campus operations updates. We'll update this page when there is an institution-wide emergency.

Emergency Numbers

In an on-campus emergency, always first call Public Safety at 212-305-7979. In a medical emergency, call 911.

CUIMC Emergency Numbers  
Public Safety 212-305-7979
Environmental Health and Safety 212-305-6780
CUIMC Facilities Management 212-305-4357 (HELP), option 3
Radiation Safety 212-305-0303
Student Health Service 212-305-3400
CUIMC Advisory Hotline (only active during institution-wide emergencies) 212-305-7300

Emergency Preparedness

Freezer Failure Emergency Protocol

CUIMC Facilities Management and Campus Services has 13 upright, shelved -80°C freezers available for the research community to use during a freezer failure if your freezer is being repaired or replaced. These freezers are alarmed using a remote wireless environmental monitoring system administered by Campus Life Safety and Regulatory Compliance. The monitoring system tracks freezer temperature and will alert us immediately of increased temperatures. The freezers are located in secured, card-reader controlled rooms. For more information, contact Yvonne Wojcicki, executive director of Campus Life Safety and Regulatory Compliance, at yw2366@cumc.columbia.edu.

Resources

Columbia University Public Safety offers crime prevention tips as well as information about emergency protocols for faculty and staff.