Thread: Emergency Alerts Need an Upgrade

Emergency Alerts Need an Upgrade

If terrorists attack or a hurricane threatens, how will you be alerted? The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is working on a system upgrade that would enable authorities to contact citizens via cellphone or e-mail instead of relying on television and radio as the government has since the 1960s.

Under the new Integrated Public Alert and Warning System, Americans would be able to receive emergency messages from federal or local authorities on the electronic devices of their choice. Scheduled to be up and running by the end of 2012, the system is designed “to alert and warn the American people under all conditions through as many means as possible,â€

The city of San Diego, and many other communities, use a reverse 911 system that calls thousands of number at a time. If each city, county and state had this system the federal government would just have to tell them what message to send out.

REVERSE 911
The Leader in Emergency Notification . . .
Reverse 911 is the leading emergency notification system that allows emergency services to quickly contact members of a community or organization with ...
www.reverse911.com/

My little barrier island in FL installed this system before 2004. It gave warning when a hurricane was going to swipe us. And it was enough notice to get off the island before the bridges were closed due to high winds.

The City of San Diego and The County of San Diego both have the reverse 911 system. Came in handy during the wild fires a few years back. They can call everyone on one block of one street, everyone the entire lenth of any street, all of a neighborhood, and entire ZIP Code, every ZIP Code in the city or every ZIP Code in the county.

ReadySanDiego.org
ReadySanDiego.org was designed by the County of San Diego Office of Emergency Services to increase disaster preparedness in the home, in the community, ...
www.sdcounty.ca.gov/oes/ready/signup.html - Cached - Similar

City of San Diego Emergency Notification System
Office of ...The City of San Diego Office of Homeland Security provides information ... with the City's previous emergency notification system (i.e. Reverse 911®) before ...
www.sandiego.gov/ohs/emergencynotification/ - Cached - Similar

I like this idea. People could just register for alerts entering their phone or email. I suppose, since it is electronic, we could register for more than one type of alert. Kind of like the way we are registered for ALIPAC alerts. The emergency alert could tell you where to sign in for more info too.