Public Safety Officials

When emergencies strike, public safety officials use timely and reliable systems to alert their communities.

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Consult with your State IPAWS representative, typically found in the State Emergency Management Agency, about your ability to become an IPAWS Alerting Authority. Then follow the training, software acquisition and application steps described on this site.

The IPAWS Technical Support Services Facility provides a secure, closed practice and training environment capable of demonstrating alert dissemination to all IPAWS pathways. It enables Alerting Authorities to gain confidence and demonstrate proficiency in using IPAWS without sending messages to the public.

Every month the IPAWS Program Office will distribute a "tip" to emergency managers and software vendors. The tips will cover a wide range of topics, including best practices, recommendations, and current issues.

An Alerting Authority is a jurisdiction with the designated authority to alert and warn the public when there is an impending natural or human-made disaster, threat, or dangerous or missing person. More than 1,500 federal, state, local, tribal and territorial Alerting Authorities use IPAWS to issue critical public alerts and warnings in their jurisdictions.

The Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) Program Management Office (PMO) develops informational materials about IPAWS to increase understanding and awareness of this unique program. These materials are periodically updated as additional IPAWS features are implemented and new information becomes available.

The toolkit assists public safety agencies to minimize alerting delays; plan for future alerts, warnings and notifications enhancements; facilitate interoperability across different technologies; and improve information sharing among emergency management and public safety officials.

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