'Important new tool': BPD using new mobile emergency alert system

BEATRICE, Neb. - The Beatrice Police Department is debuting a new way to keep the community safe, but recently, it led to some confusion.

“We used it the other night and a lot of people, including our communication staff, we’re a little confused at how it actually works,” Beatrice Police Chief Jay Murphy said.

Police Chief Jay Murphy says the department is using a new safety communications system called EverBridge. It can alert residents to safety issues, potential road hazards, and weather.

On Friday night, many received a text about a missing teen. Others received a call, some got both a call and a text, and others got neither. Those who did get notified were concerned it was a scam, but Murphy says those notifications are totally legit. Everbridge pulls from a database of numbers in the area. 

Murphy notes one of the best ways to utilize the service is through the Everbridge Public Safety app, which allows you specify what notifications you get and where you get them.

“You have the option of not getting all the alerts, you can get just some of them, or set it to just weather alerts or emergency,” Murphy said. “You also have option to sign up for just texts and say no to texts or e-mails, but you have to have the app to do that.”

Murphy says the goal of the new system is safety, while giving residents the option to get informed on what they want.

“We don’t want to make this nuisance to everyone, but at the same time, we do want people to be informed that there is an emergency or a road closure,” Murphy said. “It’s a big tool and an important tool for us to have.”