McLean County has launched its own emergency notification system shortly after mass communications platforms were implemented in Bloomington and Normal.
“Effective communication is an important part of public safety, particularly when circumstances are changing quickly,” said Cathy Beck, director of the McLean County Emergency Management Agency [EMA]. “CodeRED gives McLean County another tool to reach residents directly with important information. We encourage residents to take a few minutes to register so they can receive notifications that are relevant to them.”
Residents can register for McLean County CodeRED notifications online. Alerts can be delivered to U.S. and international phone numbers and in English, French or Spanish.
The county is using the same system as Bloomington, a platform called CodeRED that is capable of sending notifications through phone calls, text messages or emails. Currently, the county health and highway departments will be among the countywide departments using the system to provide information to residents.
The highway department may use CodeRED to notify residents in affected areas about road work, road closures or other significant transportation-related impacts. The health department may use the system to quickly share urgent public health information.
According to Beck, EMA and the McLean County Sheriff's Office have the capability to send push notifications about weather and public safety emergencies whether or not residents have signed up for the service. That's in addition to alerts cell phone users may get from the National Weather Service, but Beck said the county's CodeRED system can be more targeted.
For example, the severe thunderstorms that struck Bloomington-Normal in August did not meet the threshold for sounding alarms, but EMA could have used the alert system to advise people with cell phones in the area to take cover. That includes residents and travelers moving through the county.
Beck said it will also the county to provide more geographic specificity in severe weather alerts than the push notifications coming from the National Weather Service. The system divides the county into four quadrants, which can receive customized notifications, with another geographic area targeting Bloomington-Normal.
Bloomington, Normal and Illinois State University also have capability to send push notifications in the event of extreme weather, a public safety threat on campus or university closure. Unit 5 also recently launched a new notification system for families in the district. Beck said there isn't too much redundancy between the various services. She advised people to sign up for county alerts in addition to municipal alerts, which may include information about road closures and traffic or waste collection not covered by the county's system.
