Last week, campus police responded to a number of cases including a fire alarm at Centennial Hall, a “play vehicle” violation and a number of traffic stops.

False alarm

At 1:39 p.m. on Saturday, April 10, Officer 1 was dispatched to Centennial Hall for a fire alarm. When she arrived on the scene, Officer 1 met with Officer 2, who stated the alarm was sounding only on the second floor west stairwell.

Officer 1 observed that the annunciator panel showed a normal status. Fire personnel arrived on the scene and they said the annunciator would not acknowledge the alarm, or silence it, due to it showing up as normal.

Fire personnel walked the area with Officer 1 and did not observe any smoke or fire. Officer 1 was advised to call an electrician.

About 20 minutes later, Officer 1 was informed an electrician was en route from Fall Creek and she cleared the area.

At 3:45 p.m. Officer 1 received a call from the electrician informing her the alarm was a door alarm and must have resulted from testing earlier in the week. The electrician said he had unhooked the alarm and reset it.

Playtime

At 1:38 p.m. on Tuesday, April 6, an officer was patrolling Garfield Ave. and observed a male riding a motorized longboard on the road, which is a “play vehicle” violation. The male was approaching the top of the hill.

The officer followed the male down the hill as he accessed the sidewalk between Katharine Thomas Hall and Putnam Hall. The officer made contact with him at Thomas Hall.

The male identified himself and the officer said that he needed to obey all traffic laws while riding his longboard in the roadway. The officer said a skateboard or longboard is generally allowed as a mode of transportation, but the officer said there were safety concerns on the hill.

The officer also informed the male of the “walk only” areas on the campus mall and emailed him a handout about longboard usage at UW-Eau Claire.

Red means stop, green means go

At 9:11 p.m. on Wednesday April 7, an officer came to a full stop at a red light on Patton St. and Clairemont Ave. The officer observed a blue sedan make a left turn without stopping.

The officer activated the emergency lights and initiated a traffic stop. The officer made contact with the driver, a female, who immediately apologized for the violation she made. She said she did not know what she was thinking.

The driver provided an insurance card that had expired in February 2021. The driver said the car belonged to her father and she did not have an updated insurance card. 

A citation was written by the officer for the red-light violation with bond and a written warning for expired insurance.

Slow your roll

At 3:06 p.m. on Tuesday, April 6, an officer was travelling along State St. and observed a blue SUV directly in front of the squad car. The SUV was making considerable distance between it and the squad car.

The posted speed limit is 30 mph and the officer’s radar indicated 44 mph for the SUV. The officer initiated a traffic stop and observed the vehicle’s registration stickers had expired in October 2020. 

The officer made contact with the driver, a woman, who said she knew the posted speed limit and was travelling to her residence. 

The officer gave her a citation with a non-mandatory court date for a non-registered vehicle with bond and a written warning for speed violation.

Plueger can be reached at [email protected].