Community follow-up: TMU Safe notification issued today

To: All students, faculty and staff

Earlier today, the university issued two TMU Safe communications about a person near campus carrying an axe, prior to releasing an all clear for the campus area. At this time, no injuries have been reported to TMU Security and the suspect has been arrested by Toronto Police Service.

Assault: Suspect Arrested | September 25, 2023

Please reach out to the Toronto Police Service’s non-emergency line at 416-808-2222 for additional questions about the incident.

We know that incidents like this can evoke feelings of fear and anxiety. We want to assure you that the safety and security of our campus is the university’s top priority and an ongoing area of focus.

Through the fall, we have a number of activities planned to further support safety and security on campus, including comprehensive training for TMU Security in the event of an active attacker on campus, and reminders to the TMU community to download the TMU Safe app and sign up for text messages. More information will be provided throughout the semester.

Support available for community members

We want to ensure community members are aware of the many supports available.

Student supports

• Centre for Student Development and Counselling offers various care, referrals, and resources, including individual and group counselling. You can make an appointment by emailing csdc@torontomu.ca or calling 416-979-5195.

Employee supports

• The Employee and Family Assistance Program provides employees with a variety of confidential resources to help support wellbeing.
• Workplace Wellbeing Services is available to discuss other supports and services.

Reminders about security supports and resources

We encourage all community members to take advantage of Community Safety and Security resources, including:

• The Walk Safe Program: This provides a uniformed security crew member to escort you to various locations on campus, including the subway and nearby parking lots. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. To request WalkSafe call 416-979-5040 or email walksafe@torontomu.ca.
• Get Out. Hide. Fight. Training: While the chances of an active threat situation occurring on campus are extremely low, it’s important for TMU community members to know what to do in case it happens. In addition to the information on the Community Safety and Security website, you can sign up for workshops on the topic.

Review additional resources to support your safety on campus.

Download the TMU Safe app to your phone and sign up for text messages

Today’s notification was communicated via TMU Safe. In addition to sending an email to all community members, notifications are sent via text message and through the mobile app. All community members are strongly encouraged to download the app and sign up for text messages. To subscribe to TMU Safe texts, text the word “TORONTOMU” to the number 723-389. We recommend saving the number 723-389 to your contacts under TMU Safe so that you recognize the alert.

Note: Text messages are sent via the TMU Safe vendor, AppArmor. Standard message and data rates may apply. Message frequency varies, but typically you'll receive one message for each safety incident.

Ensure your TMU Safe is still set to function fully

If you’re an iPhone user, make sure your phone hasn’t offloaded the app. If it has, you may need to redownload it.

If you’re an Android user, make sure you double check that the app has not gone into hibernation mode. To prevent app hibernation from occurring, redownload the app and TMU Safe will prompt you to disable this feature within their app’s settings on your phone.

If the app has been offloaded or gone into hibernation mode, you will not receive notifications, however if you have signed up for text messages you will continue to receive alerts.