In DHS Funding Crisis, Hyper-Reach Announces Bridge Grants for Emergency Alerts
Rochester, NY (PRWEB) February 25, 2015 -- Emergency alerts save lives. Research shows that a 15-minute warning can reduce the risks of tornado damage by up to 45%. Wildfires, flash floods, nearby crime and other dangers can all be made less dangerous with effective alerts. But many public safety agencies may have their emergency alert programs disrupted because of wrangling between Congress and the President.
To help prevent these interruptions, Hyper-Reach has announced a new program to provide “Bridge Grants” for Emergency Alerts. These Hyper-Reach Bridge Grants are designed to temporarily pay for emergency alert programs that would otherwise go unfunded because of a cutoff of Federal grants.
News reports across the country are warning that the Department of Homeland Security may be partly shut down this week because of disagreements between the White House and Republicans over immigration policy. And if the shutdown happens, grants which would otherwise go to local and state public agencies will also be cut off. DHS provides a total of about $2.5 billion in grants to states, counties, cities and towns each year. And among the services those grants pay for are the mass emergency notification systems that many communities use to communicate with the public in times of emergency.
The Hyper-Reach Bridge Grant program is available to any agency that uses or intends to use Hyper-Reach for emergency notification, including agencies that change from another emergency alert service provider to Hyper-Reach. Bridge funding is available for the earlier of up to six months or when federal grant funding is restored.
“It’s unfortunate that communities might lose their ability to send emergency alerts because of political nonsense,” said Sam Asher, President of Hyper-Reach. “We’ve helped other customers in the past when their funding was cut, and we want to do everything we can to help communities caught in this mess. Because the Hyper-Reach system offers comparable features to all the major alert providers – and unique features as well – any agency should find Hyper-Reach to be a good substitute for what they are, or were planning to use. And because Hyper-Reach is the easiest system to learn and use, getting up to speed is quick as well.”
Rules of the program are simple. The agency must either be approved for, or on the verge of being approved for, a grant for an emergency alert system for the community within its jurisdiction, the payment of which is delayed because of federal budget issues. The agency then agrees to use Hyper-Reach for emergency alerts for the period of the grant, assuming that funding is restored. Hyper-Reach will then provide services equal to or better than the services covered in the grant. Agencies are not obligated to Hyper-Reach for any payment until and unless funding is restored. To apply for a bridge grant, send an email to info(at)ashergroup(dot)com.
About Hyper-Reach
Hyper-Reach (http://www.hyper-reach.com) is a mass notification system with over 12 years of experience in emergency messaging. Hyper-Reach sends messages via automated telephone calls, text messaging (SMS), email, Wireless Emergency Alerts (IPAWS), RSS and social media, such as Twitter and Facebook. Other uses of Hyper-Reach include Amber alerts, toxic chemical warnings, and armed shooter alerts. In addition to emergency management, Hyper-Reach is used by law enforcement, 911 centers, fire departments, educational institutions, and corporations.
For more information about Hyper-Reach, go to http://www.hyper-reach.com or call 855-266-8439 (855 2-Notify).
James Veilleux, Asher Group, http://www.hyper-reach.com, 704-543-6613, [email protected]
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