When emergencies happen, be the first to know. Jasper County will use Alert Iowa to send official, real-time alerts to the public with information about potentially life-saving actions that you may need to take to keep yourself, family, and household safe. By signing up for Alert Iowa you are taking a large step toward improving your personal safety by receiving text, email and or SMS alerts. When you sign-up online, you can create one user account for a whole household or family! You can add multiple people, including their contact information, and add multiple address outside of your county to receive alerts for. Click here to download a one-page (two-sided) flyer that can be shared with family and friends.
What does Creating an Account Do for Me?
Creating a user account provides flexibility for your to manage the people and contacts attached to your alert preferences. You will also have the ability to choose a language of preference for alerts, provide information for an access and functional needs registry, and the ability to choose how you receive alerts (voice, text, email).
What Kind of Messages will I receive?
Availability may vary by county, but alerts might include weather notifications or county/community specific alerts.
How Do I Sign-Up for Alert Iowa?
You can sign up online through a web opt-in page for each county, visit alert.iowa.gov, send a text to 672-83 with JASPERIA, or download the Smart911 App. The app allows you to receive limited alerts without creating an account.
Can I Sign-Up Without Internet Access?
Yes. If you have a smart phone you can text to opt-in or download the app. If you do not have a smart phone or internet take advantage of community programs or spaces, like a library, where you can get free access to the internet to sign-up.
Can I Receive Alerts for Multiple Counties?
Yes! You can add additional addresses outside of your county to your portal. Once you do, any alert lists offered by that County will be made available to you to opt-in to. You can also text opt-in to other counties as well.
How Much Does it Cost?
This service is provided by Alert Iowa at no cost to the public; however, message and data rates may apply depending on your provider and phone services.
Can You Guarantee that I Will Receive Notification if I Register?
While Alert Iowa is an excellent system, we cannot guarantee that you will receive notification in all cases. Disasters and emergencies are chaotic and unpredictable, and notification is dependent on external providers such as your wireless carrier or email delivery service outside the alert originators control. Alert Iowa will use several means of communications to try to ensure that should any one communications method, technology, or delivery option be unavailable to reach residents, other methods will be used to improve the likelihood that citizens will see the message. You should sign up to receive multiple modes of contact, including voice, text, and email. Text messages are more likely to get through to you if lines are busy due to an emergency. Downloading Smart911 also provides another mode of communication and alerting.
When Will I Start Receiving Alerts?
Once you have signed up and confirmed your contact information within the system, you will begin receiving alerts.
What Precautions are Taken to Protect Personal Data in Alert Iowa?
Personal information provided to Alert Iowa is private and only used to notify you for official communications and to support emergency services. Your information is not used for marketing purposes and will not be sold to telemarketers or data-mining organizations. A variety of “opt-in” mechanisms are available to ensure you are getting just the messages you want to receive, delivered via the devices and communications modes that you choose.
Alert Iowa utilizes the highest standards in physical and computer security technologies and conducts regular audits to ensure all information is kept secure. Privacy policies are also outlined in the Terms and Conditions you review when you sign up to receive Alert Iowa notifications.
Information brought to you by the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and the Jasper County Emergency Management Agency.
