Why does UGA not have any emergency call boxes on campus?

ATHENS — Students and parents are calling on University of Georgia leaders to reinstall emergency blue lights, also known as call boxes, on campus.

Although UGA became one of the first campuses in the nation to install emergency call boxes in 1988, officials said they decided to ditch the system in 2004 after they learned their phone system could no longer support the analog technology. Officials added that the systems would be useless without a costly digital upgrade.

University officials also added that after researching the call data from over eight years, they learned that UGA police received only seven calls from call boxes, all considered not emergencies.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Since the murder of 22-year-old Laken Riley, a nursing student at Augusta University’s Athens campus, students and parents are calling on school officials to put the call boxes back.

“As a girl, it’s already scary going alone anywhere, and now that this has been brought to my attention, I don’t wanna go anywhere alone,” student Natalie Ngu told Channel 2 Action News.

Riley was murdered on Thursday while she was out for a job near Lake Herrick on UGA’s campus. Authorities arrested her suspected killer, 26-year-old Jose Ibarra. Police said Riley and Ibarra did not know each other.

In an online petition, a UGA student said the lack of the call boxes on campus can no longer be ignored.

RELATED STORIES:

• ‘Crime of opportunity;’ UGA police announce arrest in nursing student murder investigation
• Jose Ibarra: Here is what we know about the man accused of killing a nursing student on UGA campus
• Laken Riley: Here’s what we know about nursing student killed on UGA campus

“Many students walk around campus at night to attend classes or study sessions,” the student wrote. “Our female students, when first visiting campus, notice UGA’s roads and sidewalks are remarkably dark or dimly lit at night. The fear of being unsafe should not be an additional burden on their academic journey.”

UGA officials also created an app called “UGASafe” with safety features, including a mobile blue light.

School officials added that a prayer service on Monday will be held in honor of Laken Riley at 3 p.m.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

IN RELATED STORIES:

Jose Ibarra: Here is what we know the man accused of killing a nursing student on UGA campus

©2023 Cox Media Group