FORT BENNING, Ga., (Sept. 16, 2015) -- September is National Preparedness Month and the Emergency Management Office wants to remind the post population to sign up for the Fort Benning Emergency Alerts/Warnings, previously called AtHoc Telephonic Alert System.
The Alert/Warning System, which sends out notifications through phone, email, text and Twitter, allows Family members, retirees, visitors, Fort Benning contractors and employees of tenant organizations to receive emergency warnings and notifications, as a part of the Mass Warning and Notification System.
Tina Sandell, Fort Benning Emergency Management operations specialist, said it is very important for individuals to register for an account and fill out the registration completely in order to be notified by various means in an emergency.
Users should register their affiliation with Fort Benning when signing up for the Alert/Warning System. Options include military dependent, military student, visitor, employed with a tenant organization, employed as a contractor, TDY or no affiliation.
"We are requesting housing patrons select the housing area in which they reside. Should an incident occur on post we have the ability to notify those registered in a specific housing area with instructions through the Alert/Warning System," Sandell said.
The Alert/Warning System works in conjunction with the "Giant Voice" outdoor warning sirens with the "Giant Voice" outdoor warning sirens located throughout the populated areas of Fort Benning to send out alerts and notifications of severe weather warnings and other emergency situations.
"We use the Alert/Warning System notifications for emergencies, primarily weather; however, they can be used in the case of a terrorist attack or other special emergency situations," Sandell said.
Sandell said the Emergency Management Office wants to ensure the Fort Benning population gets reliable information in emergency situations and the Alert/Warning System offers one of the channels for them to get correct information and instructions.
"It is extremely important to have an emergency action plan and part of that planning process should be to register for emergency warnings and alerts," Sandell said.
The link and instructions for registering for the Alert/Warning System is on Fort Benning's official Facebook page at www.facebook.com/fortbenningfans.
Users should update their information every 60-90 days in order to keep their accounts active and current.
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