On a given weekday, UB's department of public safety oversees an estimated 40,000 people - students, faculty, staff and guests - on campus, promoting safety and security to what is basically a city unto itself.
When the population jumps by tens of thousands and enforcement becomes exponentially harder, university police do what any good cop would.
They call for backup.
This week, as the visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama inspires everything from traffic frustration to inner peace meditation, on-campus officers will be collaborating with local, regional and national law enforcement to handle the influx of people.
"We will all be working in a combined effort to provide public safety to everyone," said Gerald Schoenle, UB's chief of police. Departments involved in the increased security include the Amherst Police Department, Erie County Emergency Services and the Erie County Sheriff's Department, as well as state and federal agencies.
Although plans are set for the entirety of His Holiness' three-day-long visit, his Tuesday speech at UB Stadium is the zenith for preparedness with an attendance expecting to shatter previous records for any one on-campus event.
"Tuesday is the biggest concern of course," Schoenle said, citing the added floor seating at UB Stadium as an extra factor in securing the keynote address. Due to the volume of people, bags, signs, breakable bottles, noisemakers and umbrellas are among the items not allowed in the stadium for the event.
The increased security presence will not be limited to the speech Tuesday, however, varying levels of extra protection will be implemented at events throughout the weekend, including the possible use of metal detectors.
"Extra screening will be available for all events," Schoenle said. "There is going to be metal detector use periodically, as per the Department of State."
Every agency involved has a point person in charge of communicating with the others on this and other decisions as the week progresses, following an "incident command system."
According to Schoenle, the extra measures being implemented this week are mostly for the crowds, and have little to do with any specific terrorist concern.
"I think parking and traffic are the biggest concerns... if people arrive early, they'll be fine."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
