Critical event management software developer, Everbridge Inc. has announced it is part of the team of providers that have been awarded a five-year contract with the State of California to upgrade the state’s outdated 9-1-1 system to a new next-generation emergency alerting platform.
In partnership with Atos Public Safety LLC, which will serve as the Prime Network Service Provider (PNSP) for the initiative, the Everbridge Platform will enable a statewide common delivery system for alerts and warnings. The effort is a vital step forward in making the state better prepared to assist those in need during emergencies and natural disasters. With the new contract, California joins the growing list of Everbridge’s statewide deployments, which also includes New York, Florida, Vermont, and Connecticut. Everbridge is also used by 9 of the 10 largest cities in the USA, along with the entire countries of Australia, Sweden, Iceland, the Netherlands, Singapore, Greece, and a number of the largest states in India.
The statewide contract is managed by the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), which is responsible for overseeing emergency preparedness, response, and homeland security activities within the state. In partnership with Atos, Everbridge will not only provide the robust multi-modality alerting infrastructure, but will serve as the platform for initiating the state’s Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS) communications to ensure world-class emergency alert delivery to the state’s 38 million residents and all California first responders.
In addition to enabling a statewide common delivery system for critical alerts and warnings, and ensuring that those alerts are quickly and accurately delivered, the Next Generation 911 system is expected to allow agencies, such as the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to reroute 911 calls to each other during disasters, reduce 911 system outages and downtime, support text to 911, and deliver increased location accuracy for wireless calls.
“The number one priority for any state is keeping its people safe,” said David Meredith, Everbridge’s CEO. “In natural disasters like earthquakes, wildfires, droughts, and floods, California has shown time and again it is at the leading edge of emergency readiness and response. We are actively working with more partners and creating strategic alliances to best meet the needs of our customers. Our relationship with Atos is a major proof point of our ability to work with systems integrators and solution providers in order to create the most comprehensive solution for large-scale deployments.”
