NORTH BATTLEFORD — There are currently 1,300 subscribers to Voyent Alert in North Battleford and of course City Hall would like to see that number increase.
Candace Toma, Public and Intergovernmental Relations Co-ordinator for the City of North Battleford, says they have been using the Voyent Alert system since 2021. The alert system is a free service for residents.
Residents or business that are not yet subscribed can sign up through the City’s website,
“Voyent Alert allows residents and businesses to subscribe to important, but not emergent information from the city. There are different categories to ensure people get the information they care about, from news, public notices, tenders that are issued or new jobs postings, “said Toma.
Toma added, “The city uses a number of communication methods to keep residents informed – traditional advertising, website updates (which includes pop-up or banner alerts, along with integrated plug-in information directly from Voyent Alert on the city's homepage), social media channels, traditional media releases and media advisories, electronic sign boards placed around the community, digital billboard ads throughout the community, information sharing with various community based organizations, and sometimes door-to-door information handouts for things impacting a specific area of the city, like a drinking water advisory when work is done on underground pipes, for example.“
The city continues to promote the free service for residents using digital ads and will frequently add the information to the bottom of media releases to make sure people are aware the service is available and it is free.
“The alert system is used to communicate relevant information to specific areas of the city or to the city as a whole, so your personalized settings (setting your home address, your work address, etc.) can really help you get the information you need in the most effective way. There are also a number of ways someone can receive alerts – this can include a text, a notification from the app that's pushed to your phone, an email, or a traditional phone call,” said Toma.
The City of North Battleford affirms feedback about this system has been very positive from both community members and from city staff members who are trained to issue the alerts.
While the city doesn’t have a dedicated emergency measures department, Toma states, “The Director of Protective Services (Fire Chief Lindsay Holm, who is also the Community Safety Officers Police Chief) is the director who oversees the system with assistance from our legislative services department to handle external communications efforts for the city and in circumstances where our Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) is activated.”
The Voyent alert system includes a number of different categories and varying grades of urgency for which alerts can be issued. This can range from things like temporary street closures due to a parade or event, disruption of traffic due to an accident blocking a street, reminders that property taxes are due or critical incident notifications advising users of a police operation or fire scene, and may include extreme weather events.
“We are very fortunate to have excellent working relationships with other service agencies and community-based organizations in the community and region, which helps immensely when everyone can work together to help get key information out to local residents.”
Voyent Alert is a Canadian based solution to make it easier, faster and smarter to give a community’s residents and businesses the relevant and critical information they need, when they need it. It is a multi-purpose communication service and alerting app that is designed to support your community or organization through rapid dissemination of targeted information with enriched and personalized alerts for both critical emergencies and day-to-day notification.
