Emergency Communications System

The Deer Springs Fire Safe Council operates a resident emergency communications system. The system is comprised of volunteer coordinators, neighborhood observers, and an automated telephone notification system dubbed "Reverse 9-1-1."

In the event of an emergency (fire or otherwise) threatening our District, coordinators and observers would closely monitor of events through observation and coordination with public safety officials. If the determination is made to notify residents of the entire District or individual communities within the District, an appropriate message would be recorded and telephoned to residents who have registered for this service. The automated dialer is a computer-based system capable of dialing dozens of numbers simultaneously and can call all currently registered numbers in approximately 20 minutes.

The automated calling system is tested annually and has actually been used in an emergency situation once when a fast-moving fire at the western boundary of the District prompted activation. An advisory message describing the fire and reassuring residents was sent to 3,174 telephone numbers belonging to registered residents living within the Fire Protection District. Fifty-six percent of the registered numbers were reached directly. Twenty-eight percent of the registered numbers were answered by machine. The remaining numbers either did not answer or were busy until the message was canceled at approximately 12:45 p.m. when the imminent danger had passed. The automated calling system was able to place a call to all registered numbers at least once during the first fifteen minutes of activation.

If you are not registered for this valuable free service, a registration form may be found here.  Use the BACK button on your browser to return to this page. To assure privacy, your number will only be used for the Emergency Communication System.

This emergency communications system service is free to the registered residents of the District. However, it costs several hundred dollars each time it is activated (annual test included) and relies entirely on donations for its existence. A donation to the Fire Safe Council is not required, but $10 per registered telephone number is suggested to help defray the cost of this valuable service.