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Disaster Notifications

AC Alert

AC Alert is the primary way to receive emergency notifications, such as evacuations and disaster instructions, within Alameda County. Many cities use AC Alert to share emergency information and instructions through phone calls, emails, text messages and TTY/TDD messages. Receive up-to-date notifications about events and emergencies that may affect your home, workplace, and other places within Alameda County.

Signup

There is no cost to sign up and your contact information will only be used to send out notices. Go to AC Alert and signup for emergency notifications today! Listed AT&T landline telephone numbers are automatically subscribed to receive emergency warning voice calls from AC Alert. You must subscribe manually for all other phone numbers and contact methods, including: unlisted land lines, mobile phones, VoIP, digital phone, TTY/TDD, text messaging, and e-mail.

Nixle

Nixle is an additional notification system dedicated to public safety alerts. Nixle keeps you up-to-date with relevant information from your local public safety departments and schools. Go to Nixle and signup today! There is no cost to sign up and your contact information will only be used to send out notices.

Alameda County Emergencies

Alameda County Emergencies has additional information and links to the emergency websites of some cities.

Benefits of 211 Before, During, and After a Disaster

  • Emergencies call for a central source of information where the public can turn to get or give help. 211 will be that place for our community.
  • 211 is a vital piece of the community safety infrastructure. In the event of a regional disaster, 211 will be mobilized as a central source for information on relief and recovery resources.
  • When disaster strikes, 211 will be there to connect you to information, relief and recovery resources. We’ll help you access essential information before, during, and after a natural disaster or terrorist attack, to answer your questions and provide a central place for updated information as conditions change. No more searching to find the number for the countless hotlines that spring up during a crisis. One call to 211 will connect you with a friendly voice and put you on the path to the information you need.
  • 211 simplifies access to emergency services by eliminating the need for people to struggle with hundreds of government and nonprofit telephone numbers.
  • 211 reduces 9-1-1 non-emergency call volume and unnecessary ambulance dispatches, allowing for faster response to life threatening emergencies, and also resulting in cost savings.
  • States like Arizona have included 211 services as a goal in Homeland Security plans since 211 complements emergency lines by freeing emergency workers to handle threats to life/property.

How 211 Alameda County Can Help Before a Disaster

  • Our Connections
    As a result of the agency’s role in the aftermath of the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake and the 1991 Berkeley/Oakland Hills Firestorm, 211 Alameda County is recognized as a major link among disaster planning alliances locally and statewide.
    211 Alameda County is a member of regional and local organizations, such as the NorCAL and Alameda County chapters of VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters), ALCO-EMA (Alameda County Emergency Manager’s Association), and EMADPC (Emergency Management and Disaster Preparedness Council), among others. 211 Alameda County holds two seats at the Alameda County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) during an activation.
  • Training
    211 Alameda County, as an instrumental founding member of CARD – Collaborating Agencies Responding to Disasters, is able to offer CARD’s interactive, empowering, positive, and relevant preparedness curriculum. It is specifically designed to meet the needs of nonprofits and non-governmental agencies that act as trusted messengers for communities with special needs.

During a Disaster

  • DIAL 211 for Disaster Response Information & Referral
  • One Call For Help
    • During and after a disaster, people in impacted areas can call 211 to get current and accurate information about where to go, what to do, and how to help.
    • 211 is an easy-to-remember, 3-digit telephone number people can call and get connected to a live operator.
    • Multi-lingual operators are equipped with the latest databases of essential health, housing, and human services information before, during, and after a natural disaster or terrorist attack.
    • This FREE service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year.

Why call 211 instead of 9-1-1?

When disaster strikes, 9-1-1 is the number to call for life threatening situations requiring immediate attention. 211 is the number to call for critical information such as locations of emergency shelters, closed transportation routes, locations and hours of disaster relief services, assistance with temporary housing, and other basic social needs.

Information Available From 211 During a Disaster

  • Location of emergency shelters
  • Which freeways, roads and bridges are closed
  • Location and hours of disaster relief services
  • Where to find food and water
  • How to locate family and friends

Information Available From 211 After a Disaster

  • Where to find temporary housing
  • How to access other government resources
  • How to volunteer to help
  • How to make a donation
  • How to locate counseling and relief services

A Proven Approach – Specific examples of how 211 has Helped

  • We know that 211 works in a disaster. During the Katrina/Rita crisis, people in Mississippi had no central location to obtain vital information. By contrast, people in Louisiana and Texas called the 211 number for help.
  • In the days after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Connecticut’s 211 system fielded calls from victims, their families, and worried members of the public seeking help for themselves and opportunities to help others. Callers who couldn’t get through to the Red Cross found answers at 211, which sent messengers on foot to get the latest news from the overwhelmed relief agencies. In Atlanta, where thousands of airline passengers were stranded when air traffic was grounded, 211 became the place to call and offer a room to weary travelers.
  • During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Monroe, LA 211 received 4,000-6,000 calls/day; & Texas 211 received 18,000 calls/day.
  • During the 2004 hurricanes, Florida’s 211 averaged 200 calls/hour; 5,000 calls/day.
  • In 2003, people in Toronto called 211 to get quick referrals and information about the SARS epidemic, relieving the Public Health Department of calls that could be referred elsewhere.
  • After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, in Connecticut, which had 211, 95 percent of all calls for mental health counseling, volunteering, and other services went to 211. New York did not have 211 and 400 new information lines were created resulting in confusion and waste of resources.

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