Reverse 9-1-1 is a
public safety communications technology used by public safety organizations in Canada and the United States to communicate with groups of people in a defined geographic area. The system uses a database of telephone numbers and associated addresses, which, when tied into
geographic information system
A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing Geographic data and information, geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with Geographic information system software, sof ...
s (GIS), can be used to deliver recorded
emergency notifications to a selected set of telephone service subscribers.
Background
Reverse 9-1-1 was developed by Sigma Micro Corporation, later known as
Sigma Communications, in 1993. After a number of corporate acquisitions,
Motorola Solutions ultimately gained ownership of the technology and rights developed by Sigma, and Motorola has folded Reverse 9-1-1 into their Vesta suite of public safety systems.
Case studies
The system is used to notify residents in emergency situations, for example:
* During the
2010 Boston water emergency The 2010 Boston water emergency occurred on May 1, 2010, when a water pipe in Weston, Massachusetts, broke and began flooding into the Charles River. This led to unsanitary water conditions in the greater Boston area, which resulted in Governor Deva ...
, government agencies used the system to notify a large number of Boston-area residents in particular neighborhoods to boil water before drinking.
* During the much more contained
2004 bulldozer rampage in
Granby, Colorado, authorities used Reverse 911 to notify the approximately 1,500 residents of the town to evacuate from the bulldozer's path.
* During the
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six minutes ...
,
Seaside and
Astoria, Oregon
Astoria is a port city and the seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the northwest corne ...
, residents were notified by Reverse 911 and
sirens to evacuate low-lying areas.
* When the
improvised explosive devices in the
Aurora, Colorado, apartment of mass murderer
James Holmes were detonated by police, Reverse 911 was used to notify nearby residents of the evacuation order.
* On December 14, 2012, Reverse 911 was used to notify parents in the Sandy Hook community of Newtown, Connecticut, of the
mass shooting there.
* During the manhunt for suspects involved in the
Boston Marathon bombing, Reverse 911 was used to notify residents of
Watertown, Massachusetts, to remain in their homes.
* In October 2014, some Dallas, Texas, residents were notified of the city's second
Ebola
Ebola, also known as Ebola virus disease (EVD) and Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF), is a viral hemorrhagic fever in humans and other primates, caused by ebolaviruses. Symptoms typically start anywhere between two days and three weeks after becom ...
infection case by a Reverse 911 call.
See also
References
Emergency communication
Emergency population warning systems
Telecommunications in Canada
Telecommunications in the United States
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