‘If we can’t contact you, we can’t alert you’: Austin talks notification systems after floods

AUSTIN (KXAN) — After deadly floods hit Central Texas during the Fourth of July weekend, and after Austin itself experienced a microburst that impacted parts of north-central Austin earlier this year, the city is talking about how it’s preparing itself, and the community, for major weather events.

During a briefing before Austin City Council Tuesday, Austin’s Watershed Protection and Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM) leaders walked through infrastructure improvements made, how bond dollars have been used and what kind of community awareness campaigns have happened.

But city council members also showed significant interest in how the city of Austin notifies people of ongoing emergencies — something that’s been central to the recovery conversation in other parts of the state after deadly flooding.

What is IPAWS, and how is Austin getting involved?

Those messages that get pushed to your phone with a loud tone, like AMBER Alerts, are called wireless emergency alerts.

“That’s that unique ring tone or vibration you get for AMBER Alerts, Silver Alerts and the like,” Jim Redick, Austin’s HSEM director, explained.

You can get wireless emergency alerts from the president, the National Weather Service, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and local safety officials who are qualified as an “alerting authority.”

The Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) is the federal government’s program that allows local officials to send alerts without having to run them through FEMA. Officials can geotarget people specifically in impacted areas with those alerts.

Austin previously had to go through a partner — like Travis County or Capital Area Council of Governments (CAPCOG) — to send a wireless emergency alert. They are now going through the federal process of becoming an alerting authority so that they can send those alerts without the extra step.

“When seconds count, it’s a lot better when we just do it ourselves,” Redick said.

According to a spokesperson for HSEM, part of becoming an alerting authority is that regular testing will need to be done. When Austin sends its first test, it will have a public education campaign to make sure folks know what’s coming.

But Redick also expressed concern that a growing number of people, especially in Texas, have turned those emergency alerts off. On most phones, you can ensure those alerts are turned on by going to your notifications settings and going to the “government alerts” or “wireless emergency alerts,” then ensuring those are turned on.

“The one concern that I have for that is that over the past few years a lot of folks have been opting out of the wireless emergency alert system, to which I would say — if we can’t contact you, we can’t alert you,” Redick said.

Warn Central Texas

You have also likely heard us at KXAN push Warn Central Texas — so what’s the difference?

Redick said they will use the Warn Central Texas system to push those wireless emergency alerts, but the capabilities of the alerts themselves, and the rules about what can be pushed out, are different.

Wireless emergency alerts use cellphone towers and geotargets specific areas. That system is not an opt in system, but rather an opt out one. Meanwhile, Warn Central Texas operates on a model where you have to sign up for alerts.

Redick said both are important to have. While there are federal restrictions on what can be sent to you via wireless emergency alerts, Warn Central Texas gives the city and other local officials the ability to send you alerts beyond initial life-saving ones, which is especially important in the hours and days before or after a disaster.

You can sign up for Warn Central Texas alerts here.