(Sedgwick County, Kan.) – Sedgwick County Emergency Management (SCEM) launched the first phase of a free service today called Civic Ready Alerts that can notify residents by phone or email of emergencies or important news. Citizens can opt-in to receive messages regarding public safety, health, weather or other community bulletins.
Initially, the public can sign up for notifications from only two test cities – Wichita and Mt. Hope, but eventually a dozen more cities across Sedgwick County are expected to participate. Personnel in each town will be trained to send out community bulletins that affect people in their area.
“Sedgwick County is excited to partner with surrounding cities to keep our residents informed,” said Julie Stimson, Director of Sedgwick County Emergency Management. “Civic Ready Alerts can immediately let people know what’s happening where they live and how they should respond.”
Signing up for Civil Ready Alerts is fast and easy on the SCEM website, Emergency Management | Sedgwick County, Kansas. Citizens can specify how they want to be contacted – by email, text or voice call – and which notifications they would like to receive – from emergency and weather alerts to road closures and health advisories. By sharing a home address, residents can even receive alerts targeted for their neighborhood, through geo-fencing.
“It’s another tool for Sedgwick County to use during times of emergency,” said Jonathan Marr, Deputy Director of Emergency Management. “When appropriate, we will still activate the Emergency Alert System on radio and TV and send Wireless Emergency Alerts to your cell phone, but this gives us one more way to reach residents who might be in danger.”
“What I appreciate about Civic Ready Alerts, is it can instantly translate the information being sent into 69 written languages and 31 spoken languages,” said Pete Meitzner, Chair of the Sedgwick County Board of County Commissioners. “All of our residents should be able to get notifications in their preferred language. This could save lives!”
About Sedgwick County
The mission of Sedgwick County is to cultivate a healthy, safe and welcoming community through exceptional public services, effective partnerships and dedicated employees. Founded in 1867, the County has steadily grown to span 1,008 miles, has a population of over 516,000 people and contains 20 cities, including Wichita, the largest city in Kansas. The 2023 Adopted Budget of $497.4 million focuses on improving compensation to ensure fair and competitive wages while being fiscally responsible to citizens, addressing environmental working conditions by funding modern and advanced equipment to ensure services can be provided safely and continuing the commitment to behavioral health services in our community. Sedgwick County’s values of Trust, Integrity, Collaboration, Compassion and Innovation back the strategic plan that focuses on delivering the best services possible that are sustainable and manageable under the current economic and health crisis.
