Code Red info

 

Learn what Code Red is all about

by KristaLewin klewin@newsprogress.com 
 Moultrie County residents now have access to emergency information via their phones. Angie Hogan, administrator, Moultrie County Health Department, announced that the new CodeRED emergency notification system is now available. The system will send a recorded message with the voice of a Moultrie County emergency or law enforcement official who will alert people in the event of emergencies such as tornado warnings, a child missing in a specific location, an emergency rerouting of traffic, a HAZMAT spill and evacuations. Other information following an emergency would be location of shelters or the date and time when it is safe for evacuees to return to their homes. 
Sign up is free and may be done through the internet by logging onto the homepages of www.newsprogress.com or www.sullfire.org or www.moultriesheriff.com or http://www.sullivanil.us/ or www.one-eleven.net Those signing up must give a street address. Jan Haegen, Moultrie County ESDA director, said this system is geographically driven. Those registering need to look at the online map and see where their home is placed. If the dot representing your home is in Dalton City and you live in Sullivan, just click and drag the dot to the correct location and street so you can get the correct warnings. 
Notices can be distributed county wide or confined to specific neighborhoods. The CodeRED system is not affiliated with 911. Hogan said the number of warnings will be limited because she doesn't want the public to become desensitized to the warning system. "We want to send out warnings for any situation that threatens the lives or properties of those living in Moultrie County," Hogan said. All phone numbers and addresses are confidential and will not be sold to other parties, Hogan added. 
The following agencies are hosting sign-ups for any resident in Moultrie County who does not have internet access or those who need information about the map locations of their homes. Sign-ups will be 9 a.m.-noon and 1 p.m.- 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and will run from April 28 through May 13. Additional dates, times, and locations for sign up events in communities throughout Moultrie County will be announced in next week’s edition of the News-Progress. The locations include: Emergency Services & Disaster Agency Jan Haegen, Director 10 S. Main St. Suite 1 (Courthouse) 217-728-7922 Sullivan Fire Department Mike Piper, Chief 115 W. Harrison 217-728-8714 
www.sullfire.org Sullivan Police Department John Love, Chief 307 S. Van Buren St Sullivan, IL 61951 Internet access is available at the libraries in Sullivan, Marrowbone Township (Bethany) and Lovington Public Library. These libraries offer weekend hours. Those people who are caring for a senior citizen or someone who is disabled may list that person's address but register their own phone number so they can get the warning and forward it to the senior to alert them of danger. However, if they list their phone number with that address, they will have to list a different phone number for their own address. Discussions to implement this system started more than a year ago. Hogan along with Haegen, Moultrie County Sheriff Jeff Thomas, Sullivan Police Chief John Love, Sullivan Fire Chief Mike Piper, Glenda Plunkett of the American Red Cross and Clay Brush, dive team chief, wanted a system that would alert the entire county to emergency situations. Prior to implementing CodeRED, the only way to alert people was through the sirens. Those out of the range of the sirens were not informed of a pending emergency. "This (CodeRED) is the only means we've had to notify anybody outside of city limits," said Piper. Love added that before CodeRED it was difficult to notify people. "Now we can get the warnings out there. This is one of the best tools we have." Last week, a call was made to all the homes in Moultrie County already identified in the CodeRED system notifying them of a tornado warning. That call came from Haegen. If you didn't receive the call, you need to go to CodeRED system and sign up with a home phone and all the numbers you want the calls to go to. "You can put four or five numbers for one address," Hogan said. The goal is to be able to send warnings out to everyone in the county. "We need everyone to be correctly located on the map," said Hogan. "When we know we have the ability to reach everyone, then we will have peace of mind." 
©2011 Best Newspapers mailto:klewin@newsprogress.comhttp://www.newsprogress.comhttp://www.sullfire.orghttp://www.moultriesheriff.comhttp://www.sullivanil.ushttp://www.sullivanil.ushttp://www.one-eleven.net__Home__.htmlshapeimage_1_link_0shapeimage_1_link_1shapeimage_1_link_2shapeimage_1_link_3shapeimage_1_link_4shapeimage_1_link_5shapeimage_1_link_6shapeimage_1_link_7