MANSFIELD — It turns out you do need to re-register after all if you want emergency alerts through Richland County government.
The Richland County Board of Commissioners in April approved an annual $21,876 contract with Everbridge to provide the county’s wireless emergency notification system through RC Alerts.
At the time, when the county ended its contract with Inspiron Logistics, Matt Hill from the county auditor’s IT department said residents would not need to re-sign up for notifications when the new provider took over.
The county needed a new provider due to growing service issues with Inspiron, according to Hill.
Richland County Emergency Management Agency Director Rebecca Owens told commissioners on Thursday that turned out to not be the case.
“That is what we were told originally. That was also what we were told back in the fall (of 2023), or whenever it was that we were trying to decide on a vendor for this service, that everything would be downloaded into the new system,” Owens said.
“However, that is obviously not the case,” she said.
Owens encouraged residents to visit the county website and create an account with the new provider. It also offers a menu of options residents can select to be notified about, including weather.
“Again, they can receive alerts via text, cell phone or phone call or email. There’s also a way to select what you want to receive notifications for,” Owens said.
“It’s a pretty smooth process,” she said.
Owens said any residents needing assistance can contact the local EMA office at 419-774-5686.
The county EMA director said during the meeting she didn’t know how many residents had signed up for the alerts under the old system or how many were now in the current system.
“Let’s put it this way. There are a lot more residents that need to sign up … that we really would hope that they sign up again,” she said.
Owens said residents should have multiple methods to obtain information during an emergency.
“Our alert system should not be the primary means for people to receive notification. There are many alert systems that you can sign up for.
“Sometimes you need more than one way and the good old-fashioned weather radio is also an option,” Owens said.
Commissioner Darrell Banks said county officials are “investigating” why Everbridge didn’t meet its promises of not requiring new registrations.
