NICOLE TRACY
Reporter
NASHVILLE – Unanswered questions remain in the endeavor to utilize an emergency notification service for Howard County residents. The members of the Howard County Quorum Court have started seeking the answers needed to bring the service to the area.
Justice of the Peace Jerry Harwell wanted to know what information was available on Howard County’s sign up with the system. According to Harwell, “After the tornado sirens went down in the city of Nashville, I called and talked to a lady with the system, and she affirmed to me that she could have us up and going within a couple of days. When I called her last month, she seemed confused as to why we weren’t up, other than some type of list.”
County Judge Kevin Smith explained that last he had heard, the only thing holding up the process was a 911 list from AT&T.
Harwell then said that I had also asked if our time was running even though we weren’t using it yet, and yes, our time is running.”
JP Brent Pinkerton stated that he agreed with Harwell on the need to get the situation resolved, citing concerns that taxpayer money was being spent with no results to be shown for it. Pinkerton also stated that he wanted to see the system functional, being as severe weather season was fast approaching for the region, and in order for the system to be effective, people would need to be able to get their cell phones signed up to the service.
Judge Smith then stated that he would give the company who runs the service a call and see exactly what the hold up was, and what could be done to speed up the process. Judge Smith said he would have answers at the next Quorum Court session that will be held in March.
According to the website for CodeRED, www.ecnetwork.com, it is an emergency notification service through which public safety officials can notify residents and businesses by telephone about emergency situations. The system is capable of sending messages only to specific neighborhoods or the entire community. Uses for the CodeRED system include Severe weather situations, substantial utility outage, evacuation notices, missing or lost persons, fires or floods, major roadway issues, significant criminal situations, chemical spills or gas leaks.
