If the Town of Selbyville has an emergency, thousands of people could know in a matter of minutes, now that Selbyville has registered for the CodeRED emergency notification system.
Town officials began researching the idea of an electronic notification system after residents complained that notification by posting a flier on their front doors wasn’t adequate for a July water emergency. CodeRED is a more active alert.
When Town officials need to contact many residents quickly, Town Hall or the Selbyville Police Department can send automated phone calls, text messages and emails.
The system will leave a phone message if possible, or retry the phone number if the line is busy or lacks an answering machine or voicemail.
The Town can target areas that need to be notified. The entire town limits will be notified of major emergencies. But Town Hall can pinpoint specific neighborhoods for more targeted issues, such as a pipe break or street repairs.
As Police Chief W. Scott Collins noted, the Selbyville mailing ZIP code area is larger than the actual town limits. Selbyville’s CodeRED alerts will only pertain to addresses in town limits.
Many Selbyville landlines are already registered in the system because the State of Delaware also uses CodeRED. Anyone wanting more connection can request emails, text messages or cell phone calls.
However, “No one should automatically assume his or her phone number is included,” said Collins.
He said all Selbyville businesses should register, as should residents with unlisted phone numbers; people who have changed their phone number or address within the past year; or those who use a cellular phone or VoIP phone as their primary number.
To register additional information, visit Selbyville Police Department website at www.selbyvillepd.org, and follow the link to the “CodeRED Community Notification Enrollment” page.
Required information includes full name, street address (no P.O. boxes) and phone number. Additional phone lines and emails can be entered, too.
People can choose to create an updatable account, or just do a simple, one-time sign-up.
The CodeRED mobile app also shows alerts from around the country, as well as severe-weather alerts.
“CodeRED gives those who want to be included an easy and secure method for inputting information,” Collins stated. “The data collected will only be used for emergency notification purposes.”
Messages are based on geography, so street addresses are required for everyone, to ensure notifications go to the right people, whether they’re using cell phones or landlines.
“Such systems are only as good as the telephone number database supporting them,” a press release about the system stated. People must have a number in the database to receive updates.
Previously, Selbyville PD used another emergency system, but registration was voluntary and not widespread.
For help registering or more information, residents can call the Selbyville Police Department at (302) 436-5085 or Selbyville Town Hall at (302) 436-8314.
For more information about CodeRED’s managing company, Emergency Communications Network LLC, visit www.ecnetwork.com.