Township Police to Continue Testing Reverse 9-1-1 Emergency Notification System

Township residents may be receiving test reverse 9-1-1 phone calls in upcoming months, as police continue to test an emergency notification service funded by Somerset County.

The program was implemented about six months ago, but has not yet been used on a large scale, said Police Sgt. Mike Shimsky. The county's system fits in with Mayor Scott Spitzer's goal, announced earlier this year, to expand the township's capabilities to notify residents in case of an emergency or for some other purpose, said Shimsky, who also is director of the township's Office of Emergency Management.

Shimsky said the police department and his office already have tested the system, which is provided through the Somerset County Office of Emergency Management. The system is in place to assist any municipality in the county in reaching out via landline phones for mass notification to the public, Shimsky said.  The system does not now reach cell phones, he said.

The township was prepared to use the system in late June during a search for an eight-year-old township boy reported missing. After contacting the county, phone calls were ready to go out to the boy's neighbors. The calls were within a few minutes of going out when the child was discovered drowned in a pond, said Police Chief Brian Bobowicz.

Bobowicz said he is excited to embrace the reverse 9-1-1 technology since it enhances the department's ability to notify residents about an emergency, and at the same time is funded by the county.

"One of my major goals as Mayor for our Township this year has been to improve communications between the Township and the citizens," Spitzer said. He said the the township staff has since January been committed to perfecting the reverse 9-1-1 notification system. "This resource will enhance the safety of our public by leverging telecommunications technology," he said.

Shimsky said the township OEM department in March 2010 had coordinated a test call through the county system, leaving a recorded message.

During that test, more than 14,000 phone calls were placed at a rate of about 80 calls per minute to reach all township households and businesses within hours, Shimsky said.

In order for the system to be activated, the municipal OEM officials must submit a request to the county outlining the type of incident and the message to be sent, according to a news release from the township. Officials also select computerized geographic boundaries for which the calls are to be made, which allows the calls to be limited to certain sections of the township if desired. "The requesting process happens in a matter of minutes," Shimsky said. He said the township previously had looked into setting up its own reverse 9-1-1 system, but officials had considered the cost to be too high.

Shimsky said the system is another tool  that officials can use to augment other notification systems in place, such as the township's AM alert radio system. Some scenarios in which the reverse 9-1-1 system could be used for reaching township homes and businesses are for notifications of natural disaster or hazardous material evacuations, missing person alerts, criminal activity tracking, disaster recovery instructions, utility or service outages, and road conditions or closings, he said.

Shimsky said additional test calls that will leave a recorded message may go out to township homes during the next few months.