KPTV - FOX 12City expects better results in emergency alert test

City expects better results in emergency alert test

Portland city officials are hoping for better results as the city prepares to test its emergency notification system.

Portland Bureau of Emergency Management spokesperson Randy Neves said the city is giving First Call, the vendor who provides the system, a second chance at testing the new notification program.

First Call plans to test the system Thursday morning at 11:00. The test will deliver a message to all landline phones within city limits, as well as texts and emails to those who have voluntarily signed up to received the alerts.

"We've been working with the vendor, and they've assured us that all those changes they had to make to the code have been taken care of, and that the system should work flawlessly," said Portland Bureau of Emergency Management Director Carmen Menlo.

January's test was deemed a failure, reaching less than 1 percent of the 317,000 devices signed up to receive the alerts.

First Call has ensured the city that the test will be successful.

The city estimates that it will take three hours for the system to send out an alert to all the users who have signed up to receive them.

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