Residents encouraged to register with Henrico’s emergency alert system after water crisis
VENN
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- Henrico County is asking residents and other community members to register with its emergency alerting system and make sure their information is updated to stay informed following the Richmond area water crisis.
According to Henrico County, water service outages that occurred in the region in early January highlighted challenges with the Henrico County Alert system, which is free and reportedly more effective when users opt in to receive alerts by landline, mobile phone, computer or other devices.
(Photo courtesy: Henrico County)
The county said it sent two messages during the water crisis -- one announcing a countywide boil water advisory and another message when the advisory was lifted.
Officials said the messages sent to the county's entire database were the most expansive since the system was launched in 2023, as messages are typically targeted to users in a particular area or community based on a confined emergency, such as a hazardous materials spill or shelter-in-place.
The county's system uses the high-speed Everbridge platform and currently has 226,512 residential and business contacts. By comparison, the county has about 350,000 residents and more than 144,000 households.
However, officials said messages to 95,707 contacts were undeliverable during the water crisis because of invalid information, such as a deactivated phone number or email address.
Rob Rowley, chief of Henrico’s Department of Emergency Management and Workplace Safety, said for the county's alert system to be the most effective, it needs to build a robust database of subscribers with accurate information on where they live or work, and how to reach them.
"We’re asking residents to do their part by signing up and keeping their information updated, particularly as mobile technology continues to replace traditional landline phones that are assigned to specific street addresses,” Rowley said.
To register with Henrico County's emergency alerting system, go here.
According to the county, the Board of Supervisors will hold a work session at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 11 to receive a report from independent consultants on the county's response to the disruption of water service, which impacted more than 24,000 customers in central and eastern Henrico.
