Emergency warning system unveiled

BENTON COUNTY — Benton County will make more than 2 million phone calls in the next year if a recent stretch of months is a reliable guide.

That’s what would have happened if the county’s new emergency warning system had been up and running from Oct. 31, 2008, through Sept. 22, 2009. During those 12 months there were three tornado warnings and 49 severe thunderstorm warnings issued for some part of Benton County, according to information gathered by the county’s Department of Emergency Management. The largest of those weather events would have generated 101,508 notification calls, while the smallest would have caused just 267 people to be notified.

County officials unveiled the new system July 20 at a meeting with representatives of Benton County cities and towns. The mayors or their representatives were briefed on the system, which is designed to send a voicemessage to every land-line telephone in areas that are placed under severe weather warnings by the National Weather Service.

The county has tailored its system to mirror the polygon system used bythe weather service to indicate areas threatened by severe weather and the potential path of these storms.The county’s system can add areas that will receive the warning calls without duplicating calls already made if a storm changes direction.

Initially, the system will include all landlines in Benton County. Although county residents who don’t want to receive the warning calls can contact the county’s emergency services office and opt out of the system, officials are asking people to be patient before making any decision.

“We want to encourage you, and we want you to encourage your citizens, not to be hasty and opt out,” Matt Garrity, the county’s manager of emergency services, told the group attending lastTuesday’s briefing. “This can save lives. If it saves even one life, that $100,000 we’ve spent is worth every penny.”

Gentry Fire Chief Vester Cripps said after the meeting that he saw the systemas offering an extra layer of protection for residents of his city. Gentry has a system of storm sirens, Cripps said, but sirens have limits.

“I think it’s a very good system,” Cripps said. “The city of Gentry does have sirens for the city; they’re activated by the police chief and the fire chief. I think this will be betterthan the siren system. If there’s severe weather, it’s windy, rainy, noisy and you’re probably inside your house. You might not hear the sirens. This will be a better tool. You’ll hear your phone ring inside your house.”

Gentry Mayor Wes Hogue, whose city has a system of three emergency warning sirens, said he looks forward to seeing how the telephone notification system can supplement the sirens.

“I believe in sirens because we’re very prudent about how we use our sirens,” Hogue said. “We don’t use them unless there’s a real emergency. But with modern construction methods, you can’t always hear it if you’re inside a building, so it’s not always an extremely efficient system.”

Hogue said he’s supportive of the new system,based on what he knows about it. He said Gentry will see how it works and then decide how much use the city will make of it.

“I am all in favor of it,” he said. “It can reach you while you’re in your house.In addition to our sirens, I think it’s going to be a very good system. The proof will be in the pudding, of course, but I know I’m going to sign up for any notification I can possibly get because of the nature of my position as an elected official. But I’d encourage anyone to do the same. If it can give a person one minute, two minutes or five minutes notification it has the potential to save many lives.”

If people take the time to consider their choices, the system offers much more than emergency telephone calls, said Chris Brantley, the county’s coordinator of emergency services. Benton County will have weather alerts on a Facebook page and on a Twitter account. Thesystem can also send out text messages and e-mail, at no extra cost to the county or cities, on almost any topic. People who use only cell phones can sign up to receive e-mail or text messages.

Garrity said potential subjects for text or e-mail messages could range from civic events to police emergencies or hazardous materials incidents to missing person reports. Parents can enter the location of their children’s schools and get weather alerts for those sites. People living in other states could sign up to receive weather alerts for areas in the county they have family.

Benton County Judge Dave Bisbee said it will take some time for people to get used to the newsystem, particularly older residents.

“I have a 91-year-old mother, and I know the first time she gets a call in the middle of the night I’m going to get a call,” Bisbee said. “For a lot of people, when they get a call in the middle of the night, they’re not going to be very alert; panic is going to set in. It’s a warning system. Listen to it, but don’t panic. People are going to think they’re being singled out when they’re not.”

Bisbee said the county’s system is primarily meantto assist rural areas, smaller cities and areas like Bella Vista where topography makes a siren system impractical. He said it’s available for people to use however they choose.

“We have a warningsystem for emergency situations,” he said. “I’m not trying to sell it to anybody. It’s their life and they can live it however they choose. We put the system in for them, not for the county.” At A Glance Benton County Warning Sirens

According to emergency services officials, seven of the 23 incorporated cities in Benton County have emergency warning sirens. Rogers - 20 sirens Bentonville - 16 sirens Siloam Springs - eight sirens Gravette - five sirens Decatur - four sirens Pea Ridge - three sirens Gentry - three sirens

Source: Benton County Department of Emergency Management