Tragedy in Oregon sparks conversation about security at New Mexico State

A gunman opened fire at a rural Oregon community college Thursday, killing at least a dozen people before dying in a shootout with police, authorities said.

The tragedy has sparked a conversation about security on all campuses across the country.

Starting this semester, New Mexico State University started checking bags on campus and at football games. But after hearing about Thursday’s tragedy, NMSU Police Chief Steven Lopez says more needs to be done.

“We’ve been training the general public campus community and our officers about active killer incidents for a number of years now,” Lopez said.

Lopez says state law allows students to bring a gun on campus but it must stay in their vehicle.

“Open carry and concealed carry both are not allowed except for those authorized personnel,” Lopez said.

He says as soon as he heard the news from Oregon, he notified all on campus security. Students we spoke to at NMSU say they feel safe but remain cautious.

“I usually commute on foot and i feel relatively safe on this campus nothing bad has happened to me,” Abrianna Ganez, a freshman at NMSU, said.

“I don’t ever feel like there’s ever any danger but I mean I guess that’s another thing we need to start taking into consideration because we don’t know who’s around the corner,” Valery Venezuela, an NMSU student, said.

Lopez tells ABC-7 while NMSU has many security measures in place, the tragedy in Oregon is a sad reminder for everyone.

“Unfortunately this case just shows our work is still just beginning we got a lot more we have to keep doing,” Lopez said.

Lopez says since many students might have family in Oregon, there are always grief counselors available on campus.