O.C. Well-Prepared For Emergencies

By MADDY VITALE When emergencies happen, emergency responders are ready to do their jobs. But they need to be notified and every minute counts. That is why Ocean City officials are emphasizing the importance of residents, second home and business owners signing up for CodeRED. “We encourage everyone to sign up for this service which we use sparingly for only the most important of messages,” Ocean City Emergency Management Director Frank Donato said Monday. The service is a high-speed notification system that allows city officials to quickly deliver emergency messages by phone, email or text message, in case of storms, coastal flooding and other potentially hazardous weather conditions. Donato said that the service is vital and one that the city has been using for years. “The CodeRED service, commonly known as reverse 911, allows local government to reach out to citizens and residents quickly and efficiently to warn of an impending emergency or weather event,” Donato, who is also the city’s Chief Financial Officer, explained. Recently, there has been an added feature that will help officials deliver the best service. “We added a text to enroll feature, which is new and allows people to share phone numbers other than the landlines which we already have through their mobile device,” Donato pointed out. He continued, “While we have access to all landline phone numbers in town, it's obvious that in today's world, establishing a database of cell phone numbers makes the system much more effective.” Whether it is a snowstorm like this Jan. 13, 2019 one, or another weather emergency, CodeRED keeps people who sign up for the service informed. The CodeRED system is only as good as the telephone number database supporting them. Donato noted that people should not assume his or her phone number is included. It is important for people to sign up their residences and businesses, officials urged in a city release. One of the reasons the CodeRED system was selected is that it gives individuals and businesses the ability to add their own phone numbers directly into the system's database, according to a city release. For more information visit www.ocnj.us/oem and follow the "Sign Up for Emergency Notification System" link. You can also text OCNJALERTS to 99411 to enroll your information from your mobile phone. All businesses should register, as well as people who have unlisted phone numbers, who have changed their phone number or address within the past year, and those who use a cell phone or VoIP phone as their primary number. The person’s information is used solely for emergency notification purposes. CodeRED allows geographically based delivery, which means street addresses are required to ensure emergency notification calls are received by the proper individuals in a given situation. While the system works for cell phones, there needs to be a street address associated with it so that the resident or business owner receives the proper and relevant messages. Owners who maintain two residences and business owners should use their Ocean City address when registering a mobile phone. For more information click on these hyperlinks from the City of Ocean City: How to Register for CodeRED Alerts Online , How to Register for CodeRED Alerts by Text  The CodeRED emergency alert system is designed to give those who are signed up updated information on weather conditions throughout the resort.