Our View: City must better notify students of safety issues

Kirksville has a population of approximately 17,000, and roughly 6,000 of those residents are Truman students. With such a large student population, the city must begin to adapt to our needs.

From Oct. 4 to Oct. 6, there was a boiler advisory for two blocks of East Jefferson Street between High Street and Florence Street (see story, page one).  However, these streets - populated mainly by students - were not properly notified of the alert. The Adair County 911 center has an automated phone service that calls landline phones in areas subject to advisories to warn them of precautionary boil orders. But, most students do not use land lines, and only one house in this two-block radius had a registered land line. Not many knew about the possible dangers they might have faced by simply turning on the faucet and taking a drink.

The city must find a more efficient way to notify citizens when important local issues arise. The 911 center said it also left door hangers on the houses that were under the boiler alert. However, multiple residents claimed not to have received them. The advisory was posted on the city of Kirksville's website, as well.

The door hangers would have been an effective way to notify residents about the alert. However, when some affected don't receive one, something is wrong. The city must not only be accurate in its method of notifying but must also be able to reach all citizens in a timely manner.

We also think that simply posting this potentially dangerous alert on the Kirksville website is futile. Few students and residents check this site on a regular basis. Who willingly goes looking for a problem such as this unless given a reason to do so?

Were the residents supposed to wait until they felt sick from drinking the water to go investigate a cause? It should be the responsibility of the city to inform us of these matters - not a game of chance.   

Fortunately, the water was safe. The boiler alert was just a precautionary measure in response to a car accident that disrupted a water main on Oct. 2. It is a good thing, too, considering no one received warning or had prepared to boil all their water before drinking it or cooking with it.

The Kirksville Police Department recently put a system called Nixle in place that notifies residents who register with the system of community safety alerts via text messages or e-mails from KPD. In a college city where the campus community operates mainly by cell phones, smart phones and e-mail, this is the most effective way to inform residents of important issues. So why was the boiler alert not relayed to the affected parties in this way?

The 911 center said it has a program in place that allows residents to register and receive electronic alerts about boiler advisories and severe weather. Although this is a good concept, it will not be beneficial unless people are aware it exists.

Information about the alert system and the website address for registration should be provided to all citizens when moving into a residence. It might also be effective to advertise the program when citizens receive their water bills. That way, we won't have to fear unknown parasites every time we get thirsty.

Kirksville must adapt with the times, because calling land lines will no longer act as an effective means of notification. Ensuring the safety and well-being of all residents, including a large number of students, must be a vital objective on the city's agenda.