Bangor School Department implements new emergency alert system
BANGOR — Bangor schools are introducing a new emergency alert system in an effort to keep students and teachers safe.
As the latest step in ongoing safety efforts, the Bangor School Department announced the launch of a new emergency alert system.
The department partnered with Centegix, an incident response group, to provide all staff at each of the schools in the department with wearable badges that can alert police faster than a 911 call.
When a staff member activates their badge, strobe lights throughout the schools change color and an intercom message is played to alert everyone in the building.
Bangor High School Student Kaeleigh Bowen shared how she feels about the recent change.
“Obviously it’s not something we ever want to have to use, but knowing that it’s there if it were ever necessary is really important,” said Bowen. “Speaking for me and all of my classmates, we’re just really grateful to have this new security system to keep us safe in school.”
The Bangor School Department is the first in the state to implement this system.
According to Ray Phinney, the director of community relations and safety for the Bangor School Department, this new system is essential for preventing school incidents.
“Each time that there’s a school shooting, communities always go into the grieving process, and anything that we can do to help minimize the effects of those types of violence in our schools are things that we see as beneficial,” said Phinney.
Phinney says the badges are connected to sensors throughout the buildings, which allow police to respond within one-and-a-half to three minutes — all with the press of a button.
According to superintendent James Tager, the department spent around $409,000 for a five-year contract with Centegix, but the improved safety that comes with that cost is priceless.
“The cost to me — obviously we have school budgets — but I think the cost, to me, for peace of mind, was worth every cent that we paid,” said Tager.
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