Improved Contra Costa Warning System Ready

Contra Costa County, CA, unveiled its new emergency telephone system, run by Honeywell International. The new system can send residents messages within a few minutes, place calls in foreign languages, and instantly show emergency officials which households have been reached.

The new system should prevent any notification delays, such as the one experienced in January when a fire broke out at the Chevron Richmond Refinery and a computer glitch caused a half-hour delay in notifying houses potentially in the path of toxic fumes.

The county’s Community Warning System notifies residents of refinery emergencies, natural disasters, missing persons, and other situations that require nearby neighborhoods to receive information quickly.

The system spreads information using automated telephone calls, sirens, broadcast, and online media and weather radios.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC) from MediaNews (04/07/07); Huff, Ryan.