San Luis Obispo County's Office of Emergency Services has launched a new notification system for non-emergency alerts — AlertSLO.
In an emergency, Reverse 911 is used to provide critical information via email, text, or phone. With California currently experiencing dangerous wildfire conditions, these alerts are vital. The county recognized certain alerts such as highway closures, severe weather, power outages, and public health alerts are also important for community members to be aware of.
“The new system that we're launching is really designed to educate and inform the public about important information, but not emergency information," said Anita Konopa, SLO County Emergency Services Coordinator. "So information that they need to know that's going to impact their life but not information that requires them to necessarily take an action due to an emergency.”
By going to AlertSLO.org, entering your name and a way to contact you like an email address or a phone number, you'll receive selected notifications of your preference. You can also download the AlertSense application to your mobile device.
“I lived in Texas for a while and always got tornado alerts," said SLO County resident Charlene Holder. "But I've noticed the fires and I've been watching so I've got my bags packed ready to roll if something happens."
“I'm a commuter, so I would like to know what's going on," added local Dawn Malloy. "I would also like to know what's going on in my community as well, so I think it's very important that we do have these notifications.”
“I think we're seeing that with what happened in Los Angeles, you can never be completely planned for [or] prepared for an emergency of a large magnitude," Konopa said. "But the more ways that you have identified information coming into you, the better you're going to be prepared for it. “
