TEMA rolls out online emergency alerts
Thursday, December 09, 2010 | 06:17am
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency has adopted an online messaging service to enhance its ability to provide public warnings in a timely fashion using the free online secure messaging service Nixle. Alerts can be targeted to recipients in specific geographic areas.
“We’re pleased to offer this level of sophisticated alerting to Tennesseans,” said TEMA Director James Bassham. “In light of the hazards that face us daily, timely notice and emergency information can and does save lives.”
In cooperation with the Tennessee Valley Authority, TEMA published Nixle sign-up information in the 2011 Emergency Information Calendars mailed to residents living within the 10-mile emergency planning zone around the TVA’s Sequoyah and Watts Bar nuclear power plants in Tennessee.
Nixle does not replace the Prompt Notification System of sirens at each plant, which tell residents to tune into their local radio stations for Emergency Alert System messages, but gives TEMA additional capabilities to reach citizens in a timely manner, said Bassham.
Nixle, a community information service, will allow TEMA to create and publish messages to be delivered to subscribed residents instantly via cell phone with text messages and/or e-mail on a hand-held device. Notifications can also be accessed online at Nixle’s website at www.nixle.com. Subscribers decide the format to receive messages from TEMA and can select from different delivery methods based on the urgency of the message.
The service is reliable and free for TEMA to use. Nixle is similar to other web-based public-to-public communications tools, but offers a level of security needed for public warnings and emergency information messages. When citizens receive information from TEMA via Nixle, they can be assured the message is authentic.
Residents of Tennessee can begin receiving pertinent TEMA information via text message, e-mail or the website by registering at www.nixle.com. There is no spam and no hidden cost to subscribers, though standard text messaging rates do apply.