The Arcadia Police Department is offering two new personalized emergency and crime alert services via e-mail and cell phone. But residents and business owners must register for the free programs in order to gain the benefit.
One is Nixle, a “community wire” that allows Arcadia Police to share community information, crime alerts, traffic advisories, and much more with folks living or working in and/or visiting Arcadia. Nixle is a free service provided to local governments nationwide. It is operated in conjunction with NLETS, an international public safety information network. The information distributed through Nixle is controlled by personnel at the Arcadia Police Department. The information is disseminated via email or by text message to the resident’s cellular phone. It can be sent to the entire user group or a specified target area based on locations related to the information. For example, a crime bulletin may be sent to a particular neighborhood or a specified radius, such as within a ¼ mile of the target address or area. Anyone can subscribe to the Nixle service for free. You will be notified via email or text whenever an alert is sent in your selected area. The Arcadia Police Department is one of the first Law Enforcement agencies in Southern California to use this service. The Arcadia Police Department Nixle page can be found at http://local.nixle.com/arcadia-police-department/. You may also sign-up for Nixle notifications at www.nixle.com. Enter the locations of your choice. You may also text your zip code, 91006 or 91007, to the Nixle law enforcement number of 888777 on your text capable cellular phone. By texting your zip code, you will only receive emergency alerts from the Arcadia Police Department (text charges will be based on your personal calling plan).
The other is Alert LA County. In 2009, Los Angeles County officials announced the implementation of the emergency mass notification system to alert residents and businesses by phone, text, and e-mail of emergencies in their area. The system allows the Sheriff’s Emergency Communications Center to activate local and regional alerts at the request of local law enforcement. Any designated area, from a city block down to a single home, can be notified by drawing the boundaries of the area to be notified on a computer map. Recorded and written alerts will provide information on the nature of the emergency and necessary actions, such as evacuations. The County’s 7.1 million land-line phone numbers are programmed into the mass notification system, but the public must register Voice over IP lines, cell phones and e-mail addresses. Registration of this information can be done on the County’s www.Alert.LACounty.gov website. Each cell number and e-mail can be associated with only one street address. If a call if picked up by an answering machine when an alert is being issued, a recorded message will be left. If the number is busy or does not answer, the number will be redialed twice. The system has the ability to detect and communicate with telecommunication devices for the deaf (TTY/TDD).
The two programs are in addition to the Crime Mapping service announced in July, which allows residents to track crimes in their neighborhood. The Police Department has also added the use of various on-line and social networking sites, including a new police department Facebook page, a Twitter account, and the Arcadia Police Department News & Information Blog, all of which allow the community to remain informed and interact with the police department.
— By Scott Hettrick