Politics & Government
Public Given Expanded Access to Community Alert System
Residents can sign up for the system using their land-line, work or cell phone. Previously, the system relied on phone numbers provided by telephone companies.
The City of Belmont is expanding access to its telephone community alert system given residents' decreasing use of land-line phones.
The Community Alert System, provided by Rapid Notify, has been used by the city for more than 10 years but has always depended on phone numbers provided by telephone companies for its caller database.
Now, members of the public can sign up to get alerts on their cell phone, work phone or home phone, regardless of carrier.
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"In recent years we have noticed that fewer and fewer residents are getting our telephone alerts. We need to change our communication strategies to recognize that many people are moving away from traditional land-line phones to cellular and voice over IP services," said Belmont Police Chief Don Mattei in a statement. "Getting crime information out to the public, such as our recent spike in thefts, is an important part of our community policing efforts."
The alert system is used by not only the Belmont Police Department, but other departments such as Public Works.
Citizens can sign up for the alert system at the City of Belmont website www.belmont.gov. Once on the homepage, scroll down to the bottom and click the button on the left side, titled Belmont Community Alert System. This will take subscribers to the sign-in screen, where they can set up a login and password. Users can modify their information or opt-out of the system as they choose.
