In the wake of Saturday morning’s armed robbery of Eastern Niagara Hospital-Lockport’s emergency room and subsequent call for a “shelter in place” by city residents, the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office is reminding residents of a tool to help ensure their safety.
LPD had asked the Sheriff’s Office to put out a “reverse 911 call,” to inform those in the vicinity of what was happening and ask them to lock their doors and windows while the manhunt was ongoing.
“The Sheriff’s Office would like to make residents aware that this notification only works with landline phones. It is estimated that close to two-thirds of homes no longer have a landline phone,” according to a press release from NCSO.
Another option exists, though. The Sheriff’s Office — and other police agencies — use a system call “NY-Alert.” Residents who utilize only wireless phones are strongly encouraged to go to www.nyalert.gov and sign up to receive alerts.
“On the website, the user can enroll and choose the area for which they would like to receive important alerts. They can also choose to receive alerts via voice or text on their wireless phone,” the press release states.
The Sheriff’s Office also forwards all NY-Alert messages to its Facebook page and Twitter.
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