Carthage residents might soon depend on a high-tech warning system during emergencies.
Fire Chief Gary Smith is proposing the city purchase a phone messaging system, primarily for use during emergencies. He says it would come at a “nominal cost.”
He said, “It would allow us to make one phone call that would go out to all the residents of Carthage, up to three different phone numbers for each residence.”
Smith says the phone system is very flexible. While he sees the role of the system as providing plenty of warning of severe weather such as tornadoes, it could also provide a wide variety of information. Smith says the phone system is very flexible and target specific areas such as homes affected by a boil order.
He suggested the system as the city council is putting the finishing touches on next year's budget. The council will discuss the system at its next regular meeting.
If the council approves the system, it could be up and running by the middle of the year.
Smith is recommending GroupCast which provides similar services to many school districts. He says the system will space the calls so they do not overwhelm the local phone network or cause it to crash.