UPennAlert

9-1-1 Outage in PA – Continue to Call PennComm for any police, fire, or medical emergency in the Penn Patrol Zone

UPennAlert: There is a reported sporadic outage of 9-1-1 services throughout the state of Pennsylvania.

Our PennComm Emergency Communications Center is not impacted by this outage. Please continue to call 215-573-3333 for any police, fire or medical emergency within the Penn Patrol zone.

For reporting emergencies outside of our patrol zone, the Philadelphia 9-1-1 system is currently experiencing dropped calls. If you need to call 9-1-1, they are asking callers to call non-emergency lines for their local support districts if needed. Visit Phillypolice.com for a list of district phone numbers.

Also, Penn Police officers will be deployed in high-visibility locations to serve the community. If you need emergency services, please approach an officer for immediate help.

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The Division of Public Safety will continue to ensure the highest level of safety and security for our community.

Please be sure to use the Walking Escorts and Riding Escorts available to you free of charge.

Additionally, if you have not done so, please take a moment to sign up for the UPennAlert Emergency Notification System as well as the Penn Guardian System which can help Police better find your location in an emergency.

UPennAlert Registration: Visit: www.publicsafety.upenn.edu/upennalert for information on how to register.

Penn Guardian: Visit: https://www.publicsafety.upenn.edu/safety-initiatives/pennguardian/ for information on the PennGuardian system.

Contact Information:

Special Services: 215/898-6600

Escort Services: Walking 215/898-WALK (9255)

Penn Transit Ride Service 215/898-RIDE (7433)

General Information: 215/898-7297

The Division of Public Safety will continue to ensure the highest level of safety and security for our community.

Emergencies 215-573-3333 / 511 (campus phone)
General Information 215-898-7297
Special Services 215-898-4481 (215-898-6600 off-hours)
HELP Line 215-898-HELP (4357)
DPS Headquarters 4040 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Walking Escort 215-898-WALK (9255)
Penn Transit Ride 215-898-RIDE (7433)

UPPD K9 Unit

Uman and Toby, both Labrador retrievers, are certified ordnance detection and evidence detection canines. As sworn members of the UPPD, Uman and Toby work diligently to ensure the safety and security of the University City community. The K9 units respond to calls about unattended packages and perform building sweeps before large-scale events and visits by dignitaries. They can also be found undertaking regular patrol of Penn’s campus and the surrounding area.

An Alternating 2 Column Section

Police Officer Wesley, wearing a black police uniform, poses with canine Uman, a black labrador retriever, in a field under a tree.

Officer Uman

In November 2020, K9 Officer Uman joined the UPPD, paired with partner Officer Julie Wesley. Uman is Zzisa’s granddaughter, a pup bred by the WDC to dam Pinto and sire Boomer.

Uman lives and works with her handler, Officer Wesley.

Officer Toby

In May 2024, K9 Officer Toby joined the UPPD, paired with partner Officer Matthew Keller. Toby is named in honor of K9 Toby who served in the PennVet Working Dog Center 9/11 research study.

Toby lives and works with her handler, Officer Keller.

PennVet Working Dog Center (WDC)

Inspired by the Search & Rescue Dogs that responded following the attacks on 9/11, the Penn Vet Working Dog Center opened on September 11, 2012 and serves as a national research and development center for detection dogs.

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Sgt. Mackey, wearing a black police uniform, poses with canine Zzisa, a yellow labrador retriever, in a field under a tree.

Zzisa, K9-2, Retired

(9-11-10 to 7-23-24)

Zzisa, born on September 11, 2010, was named in honor of 9/11 victim Salvatore J. Zisa.

Zzisa joined the UPPD in 2014, paired with partner Sergeant Sean Mackey. Zzisa joined the UPPD from the PennVet Working Dog Center (WDC). She continued being a very good girl in her well-earned retirement, living with Sgt. Mackey and his family.

Zzisa passed on July 23, 2024, surrounded in love by Sgt. Mackey and the entire DPS family. The team at Penn Public Safety are fortunate to have worked with Zzisa.

Socks, a yellow labrador retriever, wearing a K9 vest, poses next to her handler, officer Jullie Wesley, who is kneeling with her hand on Sock's back

Socks, K9-1, the first UPPD K9 Officer

(7-7-12 to 7-20-20)

In September of 2013, Officer Socks graduated from the first class at Penn Vet Working Dog Center, and joined the UPPD as our first canine officer. Socks was paired with her partner Officer Julie Wesley, and was certified in ordnance and evidence detection. She was named in honor of Socks Lavoie (handler Sue Lavoie), who was deployed to the Staten Island Landfill following the attacks of 9/11.

Socks passed on July 20, 2020 at the age of 8, surrounded by the love of Officer Wesley and her other family members. We are grateful to K9 Officer Socks and her years of service to the Penn Community.