Supervisors approve
emergency
mass notification system contract
By Joe Naiman
The Alpine Sun
SAN DIEGO COUNTY — The San Diego County Board of Supervisors
approved a contract with Twenty First Century Communications for
an emergency mass notification system.
The supervisors’ 5-0 vote July 24 approves a contract
for a term of three years, with one option year and up to an
additional six months if needed. The contract can be amended to
reflect service and funding changes upon approval of the
director of the county’s Office of Emergency Services.
“I’m very pleased today that we’re taking the first
step towards a better and faster system,” said Supervisor Ron
Roberts. “Emergency preparedness is one of the most if not the
most critical functions of county government.”
The need to notify community residents of an emergency
initially resulted in a “Reverse 911” system, although past
emergencies have demonstrated that downed phone lines,
overloaded phone circuits, and residents with cell phones but no
landline create vulnerabilities in the system. The new system
has the capability to send notices by electronic mail, pagers,
faxes, instant messengers, and personal digital assistants as
well as telephones.
The supervisors’ approval of the contract also allows
the Office of Emergency Services to begin work on building the
capability for residents to register cell phones, other phone
lines, and e-mail addresses for notification.
“It is going to greatly improve the safety of all
residents in this region,” said Supervisor Dianne Jacob. “This
is a huge leap forward into the future to better protect lives
and property.”
The new system also has the capability to transmit
approximately 400,000 messages per hour. “In just a matter of
three hours we will be able to notify every household in the
county,” said Supervisor Greg Cox.
The system can also recognize busy signals and call
back, and caller ID systems will note that the dialing number is
that of the emergency notification system.
In November 2006 the supervisors had authorized the
county’s Chief Administrative Officer to issue competitive
solicitations for a mass emergency notification system using new
technology and to return to the board with a specific
recommendation. A request for proposals was issued in December
2006. Representatives from county departments and from the
cities of San Diego and Escondido comprised a selection
committee.
The contract with Twenty First Century Communications
includes an up-front cost of $200,000, which includes the
licensing fee, vendor-provided training, first-year maintenance,
and system construction. The cost of notification, depending on
the type and length of message, ranges from three to ten cents
per call. The subsequent annual maintenance cost is estimated at
$19,000.
“I am basically thrilled at the deal that was put
together,” Jacob said.
“I look forward to the system’s implementation in
September,” Cox said.
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