More than a year and a half after Hurricane Katrina hit Gulf Coast communities, emergency officials in New Orleans launched a city-wide interoperable emergency text communication system called NOLA Ready. NOLA Ready delivers messages to first responders, local government officials businesses and the residents of New Orleans.

During major disasters or routine emergency situations, residents can sign up on NOLA Ready to receive important information about evacuation, threatening levee breaches, power outages, and communication disruptions. The New Orleans Office of Homeland Security will use NOLA Ready to deliver real-time situation reports and life-saving alerts to first responders and emergency managers, and the public via their email, cell phones, pagers, BlackBerries and Treos.

“We piloted the RSAN system in the spring of 2006, during a regional hurricane preparedness exercise with success. RSAN adds another critical piece to the city’s communication infrastructure.” said Lt Col. Jerry Sneed, USMC, (ret) Director of the City of New Orleans Office of Emergency Preparedness. “Text communication was a reliable means to communicate in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita when much of the region’s infrastructure was severely damaged. RSAN is an essential tool to reach our folks in the field and keep them armed with up-to-the-minute information, as well as to deliver vital public safety information to our citizens and businesses.”

The New Orleans system also takes advantage or rapid enrollment technology, enabling residents to instantly register for the system by sending an SMS text message to NOLA4U (665248).

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NPR Broadcast -Col. Sneed, Emergency Manager in New Orleans Mentions Roam Secure

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FOX News - Mayor Nagin Announces New Orlean's NOLA Ready Powered By Roam Secure