“Everbridge” is Grant County’s Emergency Alert System

GRANT COUNTY – Last weekend, an emergency evacuation was issued to a few residents near the Golden Fire in Klamath County. An Emergency Alert System (EAS) was broadcast statewide due to operator error. The error in the system has been fixed and the alert will not repeat. The Oregon Department of Emergency Management issued a statement saying the agency, “regrets this error and apologizes for any inconvenience.”

According to Grant County Emergency Management Coordinator Eric Bush recently stated that the Grant County Emergency Alert and Warning system, Everbridge, is a proprietary system purchased and provided by Oregon to counties for no cost.

Bush was on KJDY’s Coffee Time, coincidentally a few days before the statewide error, and said:

“There are new requirements that have just come out regarding using the system, and different security protocols. We’re constantly having to react to those and do additional training, so we can be prepared to send those messages out as quickly as possible.”

Bust explained on the Grant County Emergency Management Facebook page that Grant County had another system previously, which cost $3,000-per-year in subscription fees.

Bush said, ”Everbridge is a very robust and capable system, but not as user friendly. It requires monthly testing and extensive training to use effectively. We have trained personnel here in Grant County, but there is a “soft” cost to maintaining those skills, that cannot be ignored.”

Follow Grant County Emergency Management on Facebook.

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