NEMO launches early alert disaster mobile application

This country now has a mobile application that can alert users of natural disasters.

The mobile application, called CAP, (common alerting protocol), was launched last Friday, March 23, at the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) conference room in Old Montrose.

CAP is attached to the SVG National Emergency Warning System and Early Warning Checklist. The occasion was also used to launch NEMO’s early warning email option.

Deputy director (ag) at NEMO Houlda Peters described CAP as a mobile application being used by disaster officers in the region to alert the public of an impending hazard or threat. It was funded by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), with the support of the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO).

The application has the capacity for mass email notification and provides the capability to include graphics and maps, as well as alerts in multiple languages, while allowing incorporation of text and audio, better serving the needs of the hearing and visually impaired.

“This is a historical moment, as we advance in the area of emergency warning systems, which is very important, as lives can be saved, as it now provides an alternate means of getting alerts to the public of an impending hazard or threat and this means the public can take action to save life and property,” said Peters.

She also noted that in 2017, NEMO upgraded its website, so that they could send out information via that website.

NEMO has also collaborated with the UNDP, the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), to review the national early warning system through the administering of a checklist, to identify gaps and ways of providing alerts at the national and community level.

Explaining the mobile application, NEMO’s radio communication officer Jerwayne Laidlow said CAP is Internet-based and is a simple integrated platform, where you can have other systems integrated.

He noted CAP provides a format designed for every and all media and can be carried over television, radio, fax, emails and any digital forum.

“If you subscribe for the emails, you will get the pop-ups by email on your computer screens through smartphone application and through the Broadcast Interrupt through radio or television,” explained Laidlow, who noted that there is also a platform for mass texting, but the telecommunications providers must come on board.

Currently, NBC Radio is the only station with the Broadcast Interrupt set-up and it will be tested soon, so that persons would be able to see how it works.

Noting one of the shortcomings of CAP, Laidlow said a person must have Internet or data to receive the notifications and while this is a limitation, they are trying to reach a mass population as quickly as possible. He said that there are other methods to disseminate information.

Persons wanting to download CAP can go to the Google Play Store and search for CAP.CAP. The app allows you to set it to the country you are in. While the app is also available for iPhone, Laidlow said they have encountered an issue with the iPhone app not receiving the information and when that issue is solved, an announcement will be made.

The app, in case of an emergency, will give you instructions to follow, contact information of NEMO or the MET office and a map showing the areas affected, based on the hazard.

As it relates to email notifications, persons wishing to receive emergency email notifications can go to nemo.gov.vc website and click on the CAP Link under home. This takes you to a short video (for persons who might need to see how it’s done), then you must click on the CAP icon below the video, after which you click on subscribe and enter an active email address. Follow the instructions and then click subscribe and this will send a message to your email. Follow the instructions in the email to begin receiving notifications in times of emergencies.  

Also present at the launch was Marlon Clarke, technical coordinator in the Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reliance Unit at UNDP for Barbados and the OECS.

He said that UNDP will continue to invest in preparedness mechanisms and CAP-based early warning systems and making them better.