A San Diego company has been selected to create an emergency warning system for residents of multiple Riverside County communities.
Genasys Inc., following the vote by the county’s Board of Supervisors, will focus on installing the system in areas in the San Bernardino National Forest, with the intention of alerting neighborhoods about wildfire threats and other disasters.
The work on the Idyllwild & San Jacinto Mountains Emergency Outdoor Warning System includes placing speakers at fire stations, schools, water district buildings, camps and other designated locations.
Officials wants broadcasts of information to be available during any type of public hazard that could affect travel or create conditions that warrant precautionary actions to remain safe.
The system will additionally include non-emergency “travelers’ information stations,” advising visitors to the mountain communities of potential delays and disruptions.
Genasys, of Rancho Bernardo, will handle the design and construction of the speaker network for an initial appropriation of $210,768, approved by the board. The funds were part of a U.S. Department of Homeland Security grant.
Partnering in the project is the Mile High Radio Club, a volunteer organization that relies on amateur “ham” operators throughout the mountain communities.
The five-phase project is expected to take at least two years to complete.
– City News Service