Sacramento County to test Regional Mass Emergency Notification System
Press release from Sacramento County
On Aug. 25, 2022, 13 cities, 3 Counties and 1 Tribal Nation will exercise the Regional Mass Notification System (a joint system maintained by Sacramento, Yolo and Placer counties). The primary objective of this exercise is to test the Regional Mass Notification system’s capability, capacity and effectiveness to deliver emergency notifications to the public during times of a major disaster.
The test will be inclusive of those that have opted into the local Emergency Alert system (cell, landline and email) and the residential landlines in the 911 data system. The test alert will display on phones as 833-422-5253 – residents can now save this number in their phone as “Emergency Alert” so they recognize critical alerts from now on.
To register visit Sacramento-Alert.org or Placer-Alert.org or Yolo-Alert.org depending on where you work, live or have children in school and want to receive alerts. Residents can sign up for multiple addresses/devices in order to cover every geographical location they wish to receive alerts. Residents may also download the Everbridge App on either Apple or Google Play stores to receive push-alert notifications through the app, once registered.
The test will also use the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) System, a federal emergency system that uses geographically drawn boundaries to alert people in specific areas. A WEA alert causes cell phones to vibrate and omit a different tone than a ringing phone – much like an Amber Alert.
For Verizon Wireless customers, they may notice a misspelling from the caller ID that says “Sacremento” – that does NOT mean this call is spam. The misspelling occurred when Verizon Wireless set up the tri-county account. Sacramento County Office of Emergency Services continues to work with Verizon to correct the issue. We continue to encourage all customers to save the number in their phone as the Alert System to avoid any confusion when a call comes in.
More information on Alerts
Alerts will be received on the medium that the resident has opted into – recorded messages for phone calls (both cell and landline) and text-based messages for text and email alerts. Reverse 911 landline technology will contact residents with a landline with a recorded message, regardless of their “opt-in” status.
The alert system is a vital tool used to alert residents of dangers, evacuations, and other critical information to their safety during an emergency. The regional Everbridge System is an “opt-in,” address-based system that allows for more precise geographical targeted alerts.
In Sacramento County, resident alerts will come either from the County, if they live in the unincorporated county, or from their jurisdictional city. The test will replicate a large-scale multi-jurisdictional emergency requiring thousands of numbers to be called simultaneously across the region.
The goal of the alert is to test the capacity of the system, educate the public on the need for the alert, and encourage residents to opt-in to receive the alert.
As a reminder, register at Sacramento-Alert.org or Placer-Alert.org or Yolo-Alert.org depending on where you work, live or have children in school and want to receive alerts.
