Virginia Tech will conduct a full-scale test of its VT Alerts system Tuesday, Feb. 21, on the Blacksburg campus as well as university facilities located in six regions across Virginia.

The test will occur between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

VT Alerts is Virginia Tech's emergency notification system. When a situation arises in which the university determines that immediate action is required on the part of students, employees, and others, a VT Alert is issued to the impacted region(s).

In addition to Blacksburg, VT Alert regions also include Abingdon, Danville, Hampton Roads, National Capital Region (Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Falls Church, Leesburg, Manassas, and Middleburg), Richmond, and Roanoke.

Individuals with a Virginia Tech email address will automatically receive an email each time a VT Alert is sent out.

The alerts are also shared via the Virginia Tech homepage; the university status page; the weather/emergency hotline (540-231-6668); Twitter; digital display boards in classrooms and other common meeting locations and outdoor sirens with voice enunciators on the Blacksburg campus only; and text messages, voice messages, and to non-vt.edu email accounts by subscription.

Students and employees

Virginia Tech strongly recommends that all students and employees:

Without taking any action, students and employees will receive emergency notifications via some or all of the following channels:

  • Virginia Tech homepage
  • The university status page
  • Emails sent to all vt.edu accounts
  • The university’s official university social media channels (Twitter and Facebook).
  • The weather/emergency hotline (540-231-6668) on the Blacksburg campus
  • Electronic message boards in classrooms and other common meeting locations on the Blacksburg campus
  • Outdoor sirens with voice enunciators on the Blacksburg campus

Parents and community members

Parents and community members who would like to receive emergency notifications from Virginia Tech are invited to:

At this time, individuals without a Virginia Tech PID are not eligible to receive VT Alerts. Allowing parents and community members to subscribe has the potential to more than triple the number of subscribers, which could lengthen the time it takes for the system to deliver an alert to students and employees on campus.

Individuals should expect to receive duplicate messages. This redundancy is intentional to ensure important information reaches as many people as possible in the shortest amount of time.

Those who have subscribed but do not receive a phone alert during the test should first log in to verify that their record is correct and then contact 4Help at 540-231-HELP (4357).

In the event of an actual emergency, individuals must be aware of their surroundings and take immediate responsibility for their personal safety and security. Initial VT Alerts messages will provide basic information on the nature and location of the emergency, as well as instructions for what to do. Subsequent VT Alerts messages or first responders will provide additional instructions and updates about the incident until the all clear is given. Detailed information, when available, will be posted to the university homepage and the university status page.

Visit the VT Alerts website for more information or to sign up.

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