Installing surveillance cameras in parking lots and campus buildings has reduced crime and improved safety, said J.B. Messer, Facilities Management director.

An OCCC Campus Police Department Annual Security Report backs that up. It shows the number of crimes on campus has fallen drastically since 2009 when OCCC began installing the cameras.

Parking lot surveillance cameras have been a big help, Messer said, because they allow campus police to see what’s going on.

“We see it happen,” Messer said, referring to activity in the parking lot.

The cameras are so high tech that the exterior cameras can catch any vehicle coming onto campus, and then follow the person as he or she walks into the building.

Student Curran Bradley appreciates the fact that campus police are watching.

“The OCCC parking lot safety features make me feel safe while walking to my car,” he said. “And it helps me feel comfortable when leaving my car in the parking lot.”

Once the person comes inside, Messer said, the internal cameras, inside the building, can pick up the person in the entry, and maintain contact with them to any place they go in the building.

In addition to the cameras, Messer said, parking lot emergency call boxes provide security. Emergency call boxes began to show up around 2005, he said.

The boxes are located around the campus on light posts that are in the parking lots.

By going to these boxes, people can alert campus police to any situation they may have, such as an accident, a threatening situation, or the need for an escort into the building.

Currently, the boxes are being updated, Messer said.

“The emergency call boxes are now solar powered and some have a new feature called talk-a-phone,” he said.

Messer said the talk-a-phone boxes have emergency broadcasting capabilities with amplifiers that are powered from the electrical distribution system, with data lines that go from the OCCC network system. As a result, when there is an emergency broadcast within the building, the same broadcast will be heard outside on the talk-a-phones.

In addition, 360-degree cameras also are being installed onto the emergence call boxes. As a result, there will now be additional surveillance, emergency broadcasting and emergency calls, all in one place, Messer said.

For more information, contact Messer at jmesser@occc.edu or at 405-682-7812.