Out of the 12 emergency call stations located on the Bakersfield College campus, or Code Blues, only seven are functional. Four of the Code Blue phones don’t work at all, according to Mark Graf, chief of the department of public safety.
“That will all be resolved here in the next six weeks,” said Graf.
According to Graf, spending for a new Code Blue system was authorized by the Kern Community College District Feb. 21, and the agreed upon deadline for the installation is May 1.
“We’ve been working very hard to correct this for a very long time,” said Graf.
According to Randy Patterson, interim director of construction for the KCCD, the total package for the new Code Blue system will cost “just under $30,000.” Serban Sound and Communications will be installing the new system.
The Code Blues that don’t work are supposed to have an out-of-order sign attached to them. Upon close inspection, it was found that not all of the inoperable call stations did have signs up and those that did are illegible. However, there is an out-of-order sign attached to one of the call stations that does work.
Recently, students in BC club MAIZE attempted to use the Code Blues to contact the public safety department to put some equipment away after their chalk walk event on Feb. 24.
According to Zulema Garcia, 19, after sunset, around 6 p.m., MAIZE members spent at least 45 minutes trying to reach a public safety officer after trying several of the Code Blue stations that don’t work.
“We started pushing the button out here. We tried looking for their car. I decided to walk around the whole campus. I even went to the security office, and nobody was in there,” said Garcia. “It was really creepy, I walked in there because the lights were on, but there was absolutely no one in there.”
“I asked one of the security guards . I told him, ‘Well, what am I supposed to do if I am getting attacked or something,’ and he was like ‘well, you can use your kung fu fighting,’ and he was making a joke out of it when it’s a really serious thing,” said Garcia.
According to Sgt. Chris Counts, the Code Blues have proved very helpful against crimes in progress. “We’re able to respond a lot quicker, to provide safety for the community here,” said Counts.
According to Graf, a fast response time to all calls is a priority. “When the Code Blues are working, our response time is less than a minute,” said Graf.
According to Counts, the Code Blues are available for anyone to use if they need assistance or help with something. “Go ahead and hit the button, it’s not just for emergencies. We’re there for the community seven days a week, 24 hours a day, anytime we can help out,” said Counts.