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The City of Covington has
contracted with Emergency Communications Network, Inc., of Ormond Beach,
Florida, for its "CodeRED" high-speed telephone emergency notification
services. The CodeRED system gives city officials the ability to deliver
pre-recorded emergency telephone notification/information messages to
targeted areas or the entire city at a rate of up to 60,000 calls per
hour. The CodeRED system was chosen after the contract with the previous
service provider expired.
The City of Covington cautions
that such systems are only as good as the telephone database supporting
them. "If your phone number is not in the database, you will not be
called". The CodeRED system not only offers faster calling rates and
improved message delivery, it gives individuals and businesses the
ability to add their own phone numbers directly to the system's
telephone database. We emphasized that this is an extremely important
feature of the system.
To ensure no one is omitted,
all individuals and businesses should log onto the CodeRed Residential
and Business Data Collection system (Alleghany County Public Safety, VA)
via the link below or on our homepage and follow to update their
information. Required information includes first and last name, street
address (physical address, no P.O. boxes), city, state, zip code, and
primary phone number, additional phone numbers (optional).
No one should automatically
assume his or her phone number is included. All businesses should
register, as well as all individuals who have unlisted phone numbers,
who have changed their phone number or address within the last year, and
who use a cellular phone as their primary home phone.
The "CodeRED system is a
geographical based notification system, which means street addresses are
needed to select which phone numbers will receive emergency notification
calls in any given situation. The system works fine for cell phones too,
but we have to have a street address". People who have recently moved
but kept the same listed or unlisted phone number also need to change
their address in the database.
"CodeRED gives those who want
to be included an easy and secure method for doing so. The information
will only be used for emergency notification purposes". Questions should
be directed to the City of Covington Emergency Management Office, at
540-965-6323.
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