A test of the emergency alert system in the Lowell Fire District, Dexter Rural Fire Protection District, and Pleasant Hill-Goshen Fire & Rescue service areas is scheduled for noon on Saturday, January 15.
Residents in the area may receive a test alert on their mobile phones, landlines or via email. The messages will include “TEST ALERT” to reduce any potential confusion. Residents should not call 9-1-1 in response to the test alert.
“Our communities along Highway 58 are all at risk from wildfire and we had front-row seats to the nearby Middle Fork Complex last summer,” said Lowell Fire Chief Lon Dragt. “Testing the emergency alert system lets people become familiar with how they might receive a real evacuation notice and, hopefully, encourages them to make an emergency plan, too.”
Emergency responders use several tools to alert residents. Some tools do not require residents to sign up, including Wireless Emergency Alerts or Reverse 9-1-1; however, everyone in Lane County is encouraged to sign up to receive AlertSense emergency alerts at public.alertsense.com/SignUp/.
Residents in the test area can also stop by the Lowell Fire Station on Saturday, January 15, between noon and 1:00 p.m. to learn more about preparing for emergencies and emergency alerts.
the Lowell Fire District, Dexter Rural Fire Protection District, Pleasant Hill-Goshen Fire & Rescue, Lane County Emergency Management and Central Lane 9-1-1 are working together to conduct the test.
This test will not include the Emergency Alert System (television and radio messages) because those are aired countywide and likely to cause unnecessary confusion for residents outside of the test area.
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