County to test CodeRed emergency alert system Monday

Washakie County residents are encouraged to sign up for CodeRed and OnSolve emergency alert system, before a county wide test this coming Monday.

Emergency Management Coordinator and County Homeland Security Director Kami Neighbors said, “We are hoping to get more people signed up before the day of the test. We have not had a test since 2018.”

The test in 2018 was deemed a success with then Washakie County Emergency Management Director Jeff Schweighart telling the Northern Wyoming Daily News that there was an 88 percent connection rate for the all-call notification of 5,274 numbers attempted for residents and businesses using a community database from OnSolve and registered CodeRed users.

Monday’s test will not be an all-call notification but for CodeRed users only.

Neighbors said the test will show how many people received the alert, how many were undelivered or went to voice mail.

The test will also give residents a chance to see how the message will come through on their cell phone.

CodeRed was first tried in Washakie County in 2010, but ended in 2013. It was restarted in 2018 as the county’s emergency alert system and remains today.

Neighbors said people can be notified for any type of emergency including flooding, if there is an evacuation, severe weather — severe thunderstorm, tornado and flash flooding, there are three types of CodeRed alerts — emergency, community and missing person. There are seven types of air and visibility warnings, nine cold warnings, three types of heat warnings and 13 types of wind warnings residents can sign up when they register with CodeRed.

Residents can select how they want to be notified — text or email.

Neighbors said people can register online or download the app and register through the OnSolve CodeRed app.

“If people are unsure if they signed up they can go and do it again,” Neighbors said. She said CodeRed does not sale their list to anyone so persons should not receive any spam as a result of signing up for CodeRed. Persons are encouraged to put the CodeRed numbers in their phone system to ensure they will come through and not get marked as spam during the test or during an actual emergency. The numbers are 1-866-419-5000 for CodeRed emergency notification and 1-855-969-4636 for CodeRed general notification.

She said residents traveling will receive emergency alerts from counties as they travel if that county or community uses CodeRed.

Neighbors has used the alert system once in her tenure, to notify Ten Sleep residents when runoff was high and there was the potential for flooding with levels not dropping during the night.

She said that is one benefit to the alert system is that they can target certain areas and it does not have to be an entire county alert each time.

Persons can register online at washakiecounty.net/homeland-security; by downloading the CodeRed app at onsolve.com/crmobile or text “WASHAKIE” to 99411.

Neighbors said anyone needing assistance should contact her office at 347-3331.

The test will be at noon on Monday, June 10.