Are you Signed up for Emergency Notifications?

We’ve heard the horror stories of homeowners who didn’t receive emergency notifications and were unable to get out of their homes before they were overtaken by fire.

That’s a situation none of us wants to be in. I know that I don’t want to be left in the dark if there is ANY emergency situation that I need to be aware of.

That’s why I’ve signed up for notifications through the relatively new mass notification system used throughout Parker and Douglas County, called CodeRed.

With CodeRed, public safety personnel can send messages directly to residents – whether they are home or away – during an emergency. Emergencies can include evacuation notices for wildfires, bio-terrorism alerts, boil water notices and missing child reports.

Be aware that system does NOT notify residents of weather alerts. So, make sure you tune into local radio and TV outlets for information during severe weather.

For CodeRED to perform at its best, it needs your accurate contact information, associated with your address.

If you were registered under the system that was used prior to CodeRED, I’d suggest that you sign up for the new system to make double sure you are contacted in the event of an emergency.

It’s free to register. Simply go to http://NotifyDouglasCounty.org.

You will be asked to provide your first and last name, street address (no P.O. Boxes), city, state, ZIP code and primary phone number. You also can sign up using your cell phone number and email address as CodeRED can send messages via text message or email.  When you sign up, you can select your contact preferences.

If you move within Douglas County, you will need to register again with your new address. And, if you are a local business, registration is open to you too. So make sure you register your business, as well as your home.

As an FYI, CodeRED messages will have caller ID No. 866-419-5000 and the name “Emergency Comm.” You might want to program that number into your phone as a new contact, using the name “CodeRED Emergency,” so that you can call the number to hear the message again if you need to.

Keep you, your family and your business safe. It only takes a few moments to sign up for these important notifications. Again, to register online for free, go to http://NotifyDouglasCounty.org.