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Emergency Alerts
Delta County's Emergency Alerts
Delta County's Public and Alert Warning system is composed of a local reverse notification system called Delta County Alerts, along with the FEMA Integrated Public Alert & Warning System or more commonly known as IPAWS. These systems can be activated by Delta County 911 dispatch, or Emergency Management to notify residents and visitors about active or imminent emergencies. These systems can be activated individually or together as the severity and the threat to life safety increases. The default system used for the majority of public alert and warning is the Delta County Alerts system. This is the County's reverse notification system and is similar to 911 dispatch calling and sending you a text in an emergency instead of you calling 911.
Delta County officials encourage ALL residents, business owners and their families to sign up for notifications through Delta County Alerts as soon as possible!
During an emergency when an alert is sent via Delta County Alerts, the system will automatically post to our Delta County Alerts Facebook Page.
SIGN UP FOR EMERGENCY ALERTS |
Past Alerts:
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Delta County Alert - Hanson Mesa Rd at Mystic Mesa Road - Road Closure
This is a travel advisory from Delta County Road & Bridge for residents in the area of Hanson Mesa Road and Mystic Mesa Road, just north of Hwy 133 in Hotchkiss. Road and Bridge was notified that the culvert under Hanson Mesa Road, at the... Read On
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Delta County Alert - Vail Road Flood Watch
This is a message from Delta County Emergency Management for residents of Vail Road north of the bridge at Milk Creek along Surface Creek Road. Milk Creek is running at capacity and local flooding is anticipated along the creek. Delta County Road and... Read On
Active Incidents:
No Active incidents at this time. Delta County phones have been restored following the outage that took place April 16th - 20th.
Required Information when Sign Up:
When you sign, please be sure to include the following information to ensure you receive emergency alerts:
- First and Last Name,
- Physical home address,
- Cell phone number(s) and/or landline phone number(s),
- Email and
- Answer the questions for Zip Code, Fire District and what area of the county best defines where your home is located.
The system uses your physical address to send geographically focused alerts. If you don't include include a home address and answer the zip code, fire protection district and area of the county you live in, you risk missing out on critical emergency alerts!
Reverse Notification System - Delta County Alerts
Delta County Alerts is the primary alerting system used by emergency management and Delta County 911 dispatch to notify residents/visitors of an emergency. The Delta County Alerts system is an opt-in system and therefore requires residents to sign up for alerts, whereas the IPAWS notifications via Wireless Emergency Alerts and the national Emergency Alert System (EAS) alerts do not require registration.
Who sends messages via Delta County Alerts?
Delta County Alerts are sent by Delta County 911 Dispatch and/or Delta County Emergency Management for emergency situations where critical, timely information needs to be communicated to a large area quickly. Alerts are only activated in emergencies by the request of the fire department, law enforcement, public health, a local, county or state government official. Delta County will also periodically test the system to ensure it is working properly and to encourage residents to sign up for alerts.
If I sign up for Delta County Alerts, what kind of alerts will I receive?
Emergency Alerts will be sent for emergency situations that affect public health and safety such as:
- Wildfires
- Flash Flooding or active flooding
- Evacuation Notices
- Gas Leaks
- Shelter in Place Notices
- Law Enforcement Activity/Active Threat to the Community
- Major road closures/detours
- Missing persons and more!
Who is eligible to sign up for Delta County Alerts?
The Delta County Emergency Alerts system is managed by Delta County Emergency Management and Delta County 911 Dispatch as a service of the Delta County Emergency Telephone Service Authority. As the official emergency alert system for Delta County, we provide community and emergency alerts to the Delta County 911 service area which includes all of Delta County, the Maher area and Hwy 92 south of Crawford and the Somerset and Hwy 133 areas of McClure Pass, County Road 265 and County Road 12 - Kebler Pass. If you live, work or own property in any of these areas, you are encouraged to sign up for Delta County Alerts!
After I register, how does the system know where I am and send me an alert?
The Delta County Alerts system has a detailed GIS map embedded in the Genasys Emergency Management System which is loaded with address data from Delta, Montrose and Gunnison Counties. When you register your address you associate your name and contact information (phone number(s) and email(s)) to your address. In the event of an emergency, a dispatch or emergency management can draw a polygon on the online map and select a given area or radius from a central point where to send an alert. All addresses registered in the Delta County Alert system within that polygon will be marked to receive the alert, addresses outside the polygon area will not receive the alert.
The Delta County Alert system also allows residents to register simply with a phone or email address. While we do NOT recommend you do this, there are registration questions that ask for your home zip code, what fire protection district you live in and to select the area of the county that best fits your home. This allows us to select these areas and alert anyone tagged in a given fire district or geographical area, such as Fruitland Mesa.
Does the system track my cell phone and send me alerts based on my current location?
No. Delta County Alerts does not track or send alerts based on your cell phone's location - cell tower specific alerts are sent as an IPAWS WEA Alert. The Delta County Alert system is a reverse notification system and sends notification to registered physical addresses in the system. If there is an emergency occurring near your home and your address falls within the alert area, you will receive the alert via the methods you signed up for (phone, text, and/or email) and on our Delta County Alerts Facebook page. Delta County Alerts will reach your phone, text and/or email wherever you may be at the time, perhaps even out of state if you have a cell or data connection.
What is IPAWS and does Delta County have access to send out Wireless Emergency Alerts to all cell phones?
IPAWS stands for the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System and was developed by FEMA to be a national alerting system to enable the President and local jurisdictions to send emergency messages to the American people within minutes of a disaster. IPAWS has three types of alerts that can be triggered: Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and NOAA Weather Radio. Delta County has been a certified local alert originating agency as part of the West All Hazards Region COG since 2015 and we can send a WEA and/or EAS alert in emergencies with a severe threat to life and personal safety. In the event of a major emergency such as a rapidly moving wildfire, Emergency Management will send a Delta County Alert and WEA and potentially an EAS to be sure we reach all citizens, visitors and businesses in the area of danger. For more information on IPAWS, EAS and WEA alerts, please visit our IPAWS page.
- What is Delta County Alerts and why should I register?
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Delta County Alerts is the official reverse emergency notification system for Delta County and parts of Gunnison (Somerset, McClure Pass, County Road-12 and County Road-265) and Montrose County (Maher/Crystal Creek) that Delta County Dispatch services. Delta County Dispatch and emergency management will use the Delta County Alerts system to send official, real-time focused alerts to members of the public about potential life safety issues happening in your neighborhood and what steps residents may need to stay safe.
- I already signed up for CodeRED - Do I have to sign up again?
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Yes, due to the transition from CodeRED to Delta County Alerts, we need all Delta County residents to register for the new system to ensure we have complete and accurate contact information in the notification system to include: address, cell phone, home phone (if applicable), email, and cell phone number. Use of the CodeRED system by Delta County will end on January 15, 2023. If you previously created an account with CodeRED, that online account will stop working in January 2023 and you need to create a new account online with Delta County Alerts.
- How will I know if a call, text or email is from Delta County Alerts?
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Great question! We recommend you create a contact in your cell phone contacts with the below information so you can easily recognize emergency alerts coming to your phone!
- Emails will come from Delta County Alerts (noreply@genasys.com)
- Phone calls will display a caller ID number as Delta County Alerts - 970-874-5905
- Text messages will use the short code 65513
- What are the benefits of registering for Delta County Alerts?
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Registering for Delta County Alerts has many benefits including:
- You will receive emergency alerts from Delta County and first responders in an emergency occurring near your home
- Registering creates a FREE account which allows you to manage your home and work address to receive location-specific alerts
- Registering allows you to choose how you want to be notified. You can choose to receive information via a phone call, text, and email. A mobile app is also coming in 2023.
- Who can register for Delta County Alerts?
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Anyone who lives, works or owns property in Delta county or within the Delta County 911 dispatch area which includes the Maher area of Montrose County and out to the Black Canyon and the Somerset / Hwy 133 McClure Pass, Kebler Pass and County Road 265 Muddy Creek areas in Gunnison County. Visitors or people with family in the notification area may also register to receive alerts!
- I know someone who needs assistance registering - how can they get assistance?
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If you, a family member, friend or neighbor need assistance registering for Delta County Alerts, please call the Delta County Sheriff's Office at 970-874-2000 (Monday - Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm) or email Emergency Management. You can also register by texting the words "deltacounty" (must be lower case) to 65513.
- Do I need to provide an address or location when I register?
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YES - we highly recommend that everyone provide a home and/or work physical address when registering. The Delta County Alerts system works best to notify you of incidents near your home when the system has a physical address programmed into the system. If we do not have your address, the system will not be able to send geo-targeted alerts or critical weather alerts. We also recommend that you register your children's school address on your account so you can be alerted to public safety issues alerts near the school.
Note, regardless of whether you register your full address, the system will prompt all users to provide the following information to assist us in sending emergency notifications to geographical regions of the county:
- Home Zip Code
- Select the Fire Protection District you live in
- Select the area of your residence from the list of geographical areas
Emergency Apps for your cell phone
Stay informed before, during and after emergencies with common emergency apps for your cell phone. These apps are FREE to install and available for both Android and Apple operating systems.