County Warning System Expands To Cell Phones

When news spread of a 8.9 magnitude earthquake that hit the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Japan, most Bay Area residents were sound asleep, unaware of the tsunami advisory issued for the Bay Area. The Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff, which operates the Community Warning System (CWS), is continuing to make it easy for Bay Area residents to receive alerts faster.

Since its inception, the Community Warning System has worked to reach the greatest number of people as quickly as possible by utilizing cable television, sirens, broadcast radio, and telephone notifications. Most recently, the system has expanded to include a cell phone alert program. With the growing number of households that are without a landline phone, the cell phone program could reach a large population, however, cell phone notifications are not automatic. Residents must register for the program on the County's website: http://cws.cccounty.us/register.html.