Governor Rell: First-in-Nation Statewide Emergency Notification System Coming On-Line by September

            Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that by September 1 Connecticut will be the first state in the nation to have a statewide Emergency Notification System (ENS) that allows use of the 9-1-1 system to spread word of dangerous weather, missing persons, natural disasters and other crises to residents all over the state.

            ENS systems – often referred to by the trade name “Reverse 9-1-1” – are in place now in a number of Connecticut cities and towns but have not been implemented on a statewide basis here or in any other state.

            Connecticut residents will be able to identify preferred methods of contact, ranging from land-line and cellular telephones to pagers, e-mail and faxes as well as listing the types of information they want to know about, from road closures to alerts about pandemic disease.

            The system allows officials to alert some or all of the population to a specific situation. Specific geographic areas can be targeted. Residents and businesses receive a recorded or electronic message giving the details of the situation. The system is also set up to leave messages on answering machines. Residents and businesses can opt out of the system if they desire.

            “This new emergency network will soon be available to all of Connecticut’s 9-1-1 public safety answering points,” Governor Rell said. “Agencies such as my office, the state police and the Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security will be able to instantly alert people to a wide range of dangers – or to ask them to keep an eye out for a lost child or missing senior. The system also has the flexibility to target specific groups, such as emergency personnel, allowing us to bring Connecticut’s first responders to a higher state of readiness whenever they are needed.

            “This is a major step forward for state and local governments in meeting their top responsibility: safeguarding the health and welfare of residents,” the Governor said. “Whatever the situation, the emergency alert system means far more people will ‘get the word’ far more quickly. The more information we are able to provide people the better they will be able to prepare and respond.”

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