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PRESS RELEASES
JACKSON, Miss., May 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Security Systems (GSS)
announced today that Broward and Miami-Dade Counties are the first two
counties in the state of Florida to have access to ALERT FM, an FM radio-based
emergency alert and messaging system.
ALERT FM allows authorized emergency management officials to send alerts
and messages to specific groups of first responders, business and citizens
before, during and after a crisis. Because the system is FM radio-based,
information can be distributed to a large number of recipients in a matter of
seconds. Targeted alerts and messages are delivered by satellite to the data
subcarrier of FM transmission towers and can be received on ALERT FM receivers
and other mobile devices, including PDAs, cell phones and other specialized
receivers equipped with FM chips. Potential notifications include not only
hurricane or other severe weather warnings but geographically targeted
evacuation instructions and traffic alerts.
"Residents in Broward and Miami-Dade Counties will have the potential to
receive emergency information from local emergency operation centers where the
system is being tested as well as National Weather Service severe weather
warnings and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) alerts through
personal, portable ALERT FM receivers," said R. Matthew Straeb, GSS executive
vice president. "Hurricane Katrina reminded us that timely notification of
severe weather or simple communication before or after a catastrophic event
can help save lives."
The reliability and redundancy of ALERT FM lies in its use of a
pre-existing network of FM towers, which in turn provides overlapping coverage
of an area. The ALERT FM receivers automatically tune themselves to the
strongest FM signal in their current locations. The initial South Florida FM
stations participating in ALERT FM are WRTO (98.3), WLRN (91.3) and WAMR
(107.5). This ensures distribution over a large geographical "footprint,"
giving emergency managers the potential to reach more than four million
citizens within seconds.
"ALERT FM gives us the ability to distribute real-time notifications, not
only to warn citizens of emergencies, but also to brief them after a crisis
with information such as traffic alerts, school closings and locations of
hurricane supplies," Straeb said. "The receivers are small and portable so
that citizens can easily pack them during an evacuation, giving them the
potential to receive alerts instructing them when it is safe to return home."
ALERT FM has formed a partnership with America's Emergency Network (AEN)
to create the nation's first comprehensive emergency communication system.
AEN, designed by CBS News Hurricane Analyst Bryan Norcross and Former National
Hurricane Director Max Mayfield, along with Global Security System's ALERT FM,
form a complete framework for the creation and distribution of critical alerts
and messages.
"The combined AEN/ ALERT FM network will once and for all bridge the
information gap that occurs after a disaster," said Max Mayfield, former
National Hurricane Center director. "The network will eliminate the breakdowns
in communication that have plagued government recovery efforts in the past."
AEN collects emergency bulletins and video feeds, stores the information
in a central database and distributes it via the Internet and television.
ALERT FM, which is not dependent on phone lines or cell phone towers, is the
mass notification component of the AEN system.
"ALERT FM completes AEN's promise of an emergency communications system
that will continue to work when the power lines, phone lines, cell towers, and
terrestrial internet have been knocked out," said Bryan Norcross, CBS News and
WFOR-TV, Miami hurricane analyst. "Together, our complementary systems provide
video briefings, detailed text bulletins and critical alerts before and after
a disaster. The systems' satellite backbone means the vital information is
delivered to people who need it -- even when all traditional delivery systems
have failed."
ALERT FM receivers are now available to consumers. Easily programmable,
the devices run on AA batteries and have no recurring fees after purchase.
For more information visit www.alertfm.com.
About ALERT FM
ALERT FM is a personal emergency messaging system that enables state and
local government and private sector officials to create and send emergency
alerts and messages. Potential messages include severe weather warnings,
homeland security notices, hurricane evacuation instructions, utility notices,
plant or school closings, employee notifications and traffic alerts. First
responders, businesses, school officials and citizens can receive these alerts
and messages based on geographic or organizational groupings through specially
designed ALERT FM receivers or any device equipped with a standard FM chip.
More than 12 million people in seven states have access to ALERT FM
technology.
About Global Security Systems LLC
Global Security Systems LLC is a systems integrator, developer and
operator of the ALERT FM system. The company has its headquarters in Jackson,
Miss., with offices in Louisiana, Florida and Washington, D.C.
SOURCE Global Security Systems LLC
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