Playing it safe while gone for the break

resembling a ghost town, Utah State University police advise.

USU’s campus will be closed for the majority of the break and many students will return home after finals, leaving most of their belongings in their apartments and residence halls, Lt. Shane Sessions said. This behavior may invite an increase in thefts if students do not take the safety precautions, he said.

Many students leave their expensive property “and think ‘Ah, no one will be here, it’s the break.’ But Cache Valley doesn’t close for the break,” Sessions said.

The best things to do are for students to make an inventory of the items they are leaving to ensure that no items are missing upon return from the break, he said. Students should secure their apartment before leaving, he said, and if there is a roommate staying over the break, students may want to consider storage for their valuable property.

Lori Bonham, a senior majoring in public relations, said she is leaving for home next Friday and will return Jan. 8, leaving the majority of her belongings in her apartment.

“Hopefully [everything] will be OK,” she said. “One of my roommates is going to stay here.”

Bonham added, “if I did have a laptop, I would definitely take it with me,” and any jewelry, she added. Living in Old Farm, Bonham said she has heard stories of thefts, mainly of prescription pills, but those have made her more concerned about keeping her apartment secured all year around, especially during the break.

“With a lot of people gone, theft is going to be a problem in the community,” she said, explaining her need to take precautions over the break.

It’s the “high-ticket items” student should take with them, Sessions said, such as laptops, video games, cash and anything students hesitate to leave.

“When students come back, we have seen that some thefts have occurred during the break,” he said.

However, few reports have been noticed by the assistant director of Residence Life for Housing and Dining Services, Whitney Milligan. The only disturbance Milligan said she sees as a common trend is students being slightly apprehensive when new roommates move in over the break. It “just makes students feel like their turf or space is being invaded,” she said.

However, this is few and far between, she said, because the housing office notifies all students receiving new roommates over the break and they are more aware of what is going on in their living space.

With on-campus housing being open during the break for the second year in a row, staff will be available, but in fewer numbers and shorter office hours, she said. Resident assistants will conduct rounds to “make sure there is nothing strange going on, no doors propped open.”

If students staying over the break witness anything suspicious, they should call USU Police and contact the staff immediately, Milligan said.