Summit County residents and visitors signed up for Summit County Alert will need to create a new account to continue receiving alerts through the county’s emergency notification system, according to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office.

SC Alert is being transitioned from the CodeRED platform to Everbridge, a trusted and widely used mass notification system, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. The county’s emergency alert system is used to communicate important notifications about emergencies, road closures, wildfires, evacuations, severe weather, shelter-in-place orders and more.

“Being prepared for emergencies is everyone’s responsibility, whether that means having a “go bag” during fire season or packing warm blankets and food before heading onto I-70 in winter,” Summit County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Mike Schilling said. “Signing up for SC Alert is a simple step to help ensure you are informed and ready for the unexpected.”

Anyone who spends time in Summit County — including residents, second homeowners and visitors — should sign up for SC Alert, Schilling said. More than 3,000 people have already signed up for the alerts since the software transition was announced Wednesday, April 2, he said.

The Summit County government’s contract with CodeRED has expired, Schilling said. After a thorough analysis the Sheriff’s Office determined that Everbridge was more functional, less expensive and easily integrated with federal alert systems as well as the local 911 dispatch center, he said.

Everbridge is expected to provide faster, more reliable emergency services, more ways to customize how and when alerts are received, a better user experience across devices and expanded features for both residents and emergency responders, according to the Sheriff’s Office. 

However, with the software change, the Sheriff’s Office says it cannot transfer contact information from CodeRED to Everbridge. So, everyone who previously had an SC Alert account will need to sign up for a new account to continue receiving text message and email alerts, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The new SC Alert system will go live on May 1. After that time, messages will no longer be sent through CodeRED and will instead be sent through Everbridge, according to the Sheriff’s Office. SC Alert is free to use. To sign up to continue receiving alerts, visit SCAlert.org. 

Public safety officials plan to use SC Alert in conjunction with the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System, a national alerting system managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to the Sheriff’s Office. That national alert system is only used in emergencies and will automatically deliver alerts via television, radio, weather radios and as text messages to devices in the affected area.

SC Alert is fully integrated with the national public alert system, but the Sheriff’s Office said it will provide more detailed and specific locational information, nonemergency updates like road closures and public health updates and additional customization options. 

SC Alert includes the ability to set “quiet hours” so that alerts won’t be delivered at certain times. The Summit County government is also working to expand language options for the alerts, and users have the ability to request that some critical alerts be delivered in Spanish.

All SC voice calls and text messages will come from 970-410-8234, so the Sheriff’s Office recommends creating a contact for that phone number so it is recognizable.