Emergency alerts available in SV

The Scotts Valley Police Department is urging residents to subscribe to a free communications tool that will provide them with emergency notifications and other useful information.
The department started using Nixle, a system that delivers real-time news and information based on geography to subscribers’ mobile phones or computers, in June.
Nixle is an easy-to-use, secure and inexpensive way to share relevant information with people in the city, according to Tamera Melrose, SVPD dispatch and records supervisor.
“We are definitely trying to make an effort to tell our citizens about it to have a cost-effective way of communicating with our public,” Melrose said.
Melrose said that Nixle is similar to reverse 9-1-1 calls, but it is free.
“Reverse 9-1-1 costs money for the department to use, but Nixle is free for subscribers and police agencies,” Melrose said. “In this economy, it’s important to save money.”
Reverse 9-1-1 calls were used to tell people to evacuate during the Lockheed fire in August 2009, Melrose said.
Nixle would work similarly by notifying residents via text or e-mail.
Melrose said Nixle works well because of its diversity of content, which includes not only emergency alerts, but also tips about road closures and similar news.
Scotts Valley police recently used Nixle to warn drivers that Scotts Valley Drive was closed after an accident last month, she said.
Nixle has been used around the country to help find missing senior citizens, announce evacuations and help capture dangerous criminals after a crime.
“You can subscribe to your jurisdiction or nearby jurisdictions,” Melrose said. “You can even subscribe to the city where your parents live or where your kids attend school, so you know what’s going on in the area.”
Melrose said the department sends out Nixle notifications sparingly.
“We want to make sure residents are only getting messages that are meaningful to them,” she said. “We only want to notify what’s important to them, not just day-to-day stuff.”
At a glance
People can sign up for Nixle emergency news by registering at www.nixle.com