Alexandrians urged to sign up for alert system
Alexander County citizens urged to sign up for new county notification system, Hyper-Reach
Alexander County Government recently selected Hyper-Reach as its new emergency notification system, which replaces the former CodeRed alert system. Citizens are urged to register with the new service as their contact information will not carry over to the new system. The county plans to use the service for alerts about weather and environmental hazards, missing persons, and other important news.
Those who live and/or work in Alexander County may enroll (using a county address) online at http://hyper-reach.com/ncalexandersignup.html or by calling or texting “Alert” to (828) 471-4849.
Thousands of public safety agencies across the United States use telephone-based mass notification systems to warn citizens about local emergencies, hazards, weather alerts, and other threats. Hyper-Reach is a state-of-the-art mass emergency notification system designed specifically for public safety.
“Our job is to protect the citizens of Alexander County as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible,” said Mark Earle, Alexander County Fire Marshal. “We reviewed all the major vendors for emergency notification service, and Hyper-Reach gave us everything we needed at the best price. We’re excited about this new capability and urge everyone to register as soon as possible.”
The new emergency alert system will provide rapid notification of hazardous and urgent situations using a mix of telephone calls, text and email messages, and even TTY/TDD service for the hearing impaired. The system can send thousands of these messages to geographically targeted households in seconds and simultaneously deliver them to a broader audience via social media. Hyper-Reach can also broadcast messages to most current cell phones (made since 2011) in an affected area by accessing FEMA’s Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) system.
Citizens can also get emergency alerts via their Alexa-enabled smart speakers just by saying “Alexa, enable Hyper-Reach” and following the Alexa-provided instructions.
In addition, citizens can download the Hyper-Reach Anywhere app on their smartphones. The free app allows individual citizens to manage and monitor the alerts they receive, both for their home and office addresses and for other addresses they care about, such as those of elderly relatives or friends.
“We’re honored to have been selected by Alexander County to provide its emergency alerts,” said Sam Asher, President of Hyper-Reach. “It’s gratifying to be part of an effort to save lives and protect property, and we take that responsibility very seriously.”
