Reverse 911- Make Sure You're Connected!
updated: Nov 01, 2012, 4:08 PM

Source: Office of Emergency Management

Santa Barbara County emergency responders use several methods to communicate to their residents during emergencies. An important communication tool is the emergency telephone notification system; Reverse 9-1-1®. The Reverse 9-1-1® system is managed by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department. The Santa Maria City Police Department manages a different system called Connect-CTY.

While Reverse 9-1-1® uses telephone company data to enroll every telephone landline - including voice over Internet phones, residents must register their cellular phones. Residents wishing to register their cell phones into the Reverse 9-1-1® system, may go to the Sheriff's Department web page at http:// www.sbsheriff.org/reverse911a.html. There residents will find several frequently asked questions and the ability to link their cell phone with an address.

Residents that live within the City of Santa Maria may go to http://www.ci.santa- maria.ca.us/40467.html, to also read some frequently asked questions and to ensure they are registered in the Santa Maria City system. The Santa Maria system only serves the incorporated City limits. The City of Guadalupe, the Orcutt community and and the other unincorporated areas are served by the Reverse 9-1-1® system at the Sheriff's Department.

Chief of Emergency Management, Michael Harris, explained, "During or immediately after a major emergency, the Sheriff's Department Communication Center sees an increased interest in people wanting to register their cell phones." Harris went on to explain, "The time to ensure that your cell phones are registered is before the emergency. Registering your phone should be part of your family's emergency plan."

As part of its ongoing preparedness efforts, the Aware & Prepare Initiative is publishing two educational videos; one in English and one in Spanish. Working with Santa Barbara City TV, the videos help residents understand the need to be connected with emergency officials through the telephone and cellular phone system. Those videos may be found at: http://youtu.be/iLHzPMSmx2M (English); and, http://youtu.be/YQzf3FTpsxg (Spanish).

To remind local residents about registering with Reverse 9-1-1, local emergency managers, cooperating agencies and local community leaders will be adding to their email tag line:

Get Connected, Stay Connected- Register your numbers and learn more at Reverse 911

In addition to using Reverse 9-1-1 system, emergency officials work with local media in distributing information to the public. Residents may also register to receive emergency text and email messages from the Office of Emergency Management by registering at http:// www.nixle.com/ or by viewing the OEM Facebook page at http://www.Facebook.com.

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