Montecito Fire Launches a NEW Emergency Notification System

Posted by Geri Ventura -

REVISED August 5, 2010- The Montecito Fire Protection District has added a new emergency notification system to its arsenal of information dissemination. Residents who live within the Montecito Fire Protection District boundaries are now able to purchase a tone alert radio from Ambient Control Systems for their home or office. This radio, called HomeALERT, will transmit an up to 90 decibel tone and scrolling text with instructions on how to respond when activated by the Fire District.

After learning that existing emergency notification methods don't necessarily work for everyone, or in all circumstances, the Fire District began conducting tests of various alerting systems and devices, including sirens, external voice systems and internal notification systems to augment what is already in place. Once confident that we found a system that would fill the gaps, the Fire District decided on the viaRadio ENVOY Local Emergency Warning System, a platform utilizing standard FM radio frequencies to transmit the alert signals and messages.

"We are very excited to include the viaRadio ENVOY Local Emergency Warning System into our notification methods," says Chief Kevin Wallace of the Montecito Fire District. "We have spoken with other agencies who utilize this system in the Midwest and in Florida, all of whom indicated that this system has been very beneficial in pre-alerting their citizens of tornados and hurricanes. We are also pleased to be able to be the first agency on the West Coast to utilize this system for evacuation notices and other emergencies."

The new system utilizes the Ambient Control Systems' HomeALERT Emergency Warning Receiver, that functions regularly as a FM clock radio and NOAA weather radio, but can be activated by the Fire District via FM frequencies to enable a high decibel alert and text messaging across the display with emergency instructions. Additionally, the advanced model offers ADA Compliant accessories which have the capability to support external devices such as strobe lights, text to speech and "bed shaker" vibrations. The radios also have a 60 hour battery life, so in the event of a power outage, they will still be functional.

The viaRadio ENVOY Local Emergency Warning System utilizes Radio Data Systems (RDS) information across FM frequencies to distribute the notifications via the HEARO Network through a partnership established with KDB Radio, FM 93.7. KDB, which is owned and operated by the Santa Barbara Foundation, was quick to became active partners in helping the community establish the new alerting solution. KDB, which is donating its signal for the new emergency alert system, has a strong signal into Montecito from its transmitter site on Gibraltar Peak and is capable of operating for days in the event of a power failure.

"We have a vested interest in working with the Montecito Fire District in alerting residents there in case of an emergency," says KDB Vice-President & General Manager Tim Owens. "Given KDB and the Santa Barbara Foundation's missions of serving the community, this collaboration seemed like a natural."

KDB's partnership makes them a pioneer on the West Coast and part of a larger network of responsible, professional broadcasters dedicated to providing the means to immediately notify their local communities of vital safety and emergency information and play a critical role in their community emergency warning system.

In addition to utilizing the viaRadio ENVOY Emergency Warning System and Ambient Control Systems' HomeALERT receivers, Montecito Fire will continue to utilize Reverse 911, NIXLE, and AM 1680 to provide emergency and community information. Information about our notification services can be found on our website at www.montecitofire.com.

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