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Customer Story: Contra Costa County

A Gold Standard in Emergency Preparedness: How Contra Costa County Protects Over a Million People from Earthquakes, Chemicals, and More

A chemical spill puts an entire neighborhood at risk of exposure to carcinogens. An apartment fire threatens to spread to surrounding buildings. A storm causes a flash flood, destroying countless homes and properties.

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Centralized and Efficient Emergency Communication

Advanced and Flexible Alerting System

Proactive Optimization and Industry Leadership

A Unique Approach to Disaster Preparedness

No matter how safe a community seems, things can go south in an instant. And when they do, effective communication is essential. Ensuring the right people get the right message at the right time is critical. It means first responders can go where they’re most needed.

As part of the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, the Office of Emergency Services (OES) takes a unique approach to protecting the county’s 1.1 million residents. Instead of separating into distinctive regions, the OES is the sole point of coordination for the entire area, connecting with towns, cities, villages, emergency responders, special districts, and government agencies. “Most places have some separation in their emergency preparedness agencies,” notes Heather Tiernan, Contra Costa County’s Community Warning System Manager. “We’ve found it far more effective to centralize our emergency response. It’s more efficient, and presents more unified, uniform messaging for both partners and community members.

Contra Costa County’s petrochemical industry is a key feature, housing the state’s largest collection of industrial and chemical facilities. Hazardous material transport is common on its roads. In the nineties, fires and chemical spills were frequent and chaotic, with agencies responding independently. This lack of coordination was costly and dangerous.

Recognizing its duty of care, the county took the initiative to improve emergency notifications for both first responders and civilians. It deployed a radio-based public emergency notification platform integrated with sirens and landlines. The system has since evolved into a web-based platform with enhanced features. To improve coordination with partners and responders, the county adopted BlackBerry® AtHoc®

Trusted Alerts When Every Second Counts

Contra Costa County ensures public safety with consistent, reliable emergency messaging through BlackBerry AtHoc, empowering agencies to respond swiftly and keep citizens informed.

Trusted Emergency Messaging

Consistent messaging during emergencies is vital to public safety. Agencies must act quickly to prevent the spread of unverified information on social media. Contra Costa County ensures all alerts are branded through trusted local agencies, like police departments, to maintain credibility and avoid reliance on unverified sources. 'We needed a platform that could target specific people in specific areas on specific channels while simultaneously reaching partnered agencies,' says Tiernan. BlackBerry AtHoc’s flexibility allows the county to adapt its system for multiple groups, focusing on seamless training and optimization. This ensures agencies can respond effectively, keeping citizens informed and safe."

Streamlined Alerts and Response

The OES uses BlackBerry AtHoc’s pre-made templates to improve efficiency during emergencies. On-call staff can quickly send accurate alerts by filling in incident-specific details. Alerts are geotargeted using the county’s 911 database, landlines, and resident sign-ups for calls, texts, and emails. With 13% of households registered—far above the state average—the system ensures targeted communication. BlackBerry AtHoc also streamlines internal callouts for groups like SWAT and search and rescue, replacing manual dispatcher calls with automated alerts and two-way communication. Additionally, hazardous materials facilities have access to the system for quick notifications. By leveraging detailed reporting tools, Contra Costa County continuously optimizes its emergency response, reserving alerts for life-threatening scenarios like a recent fire where BlackBerry AtHoc facilitated evacuations and a faster emergency response."

A Lasting Partnership

BlackBerry continues to maintain and monitor Contra Costa County’s siren systems to this day. It helps the county stay on top of technical and industry challenges, and its reputation for security offers considerable peace of mind. The Office of Emergency Services can rest assured that the data it collects from residents is safe. “Over the past several years, we’ve seen a lot of change surrounding public alerts and warnings,” says Tiernan. “People are paying more attention to it, and there’s more legislation surrounding it. Agencies are finally starting to understand the complexities and challenges involved in reaching everyone when you need to reach them, and why they need to overcome them.” “Throughout this evolution, BlackBerry AtHoc has been a constant,” she continues. “It’s helped us integrate an alerting system that’s not only effective and reliable, but also easy to use — and that’s extremely difficult to do. More importantly, it keeps us prepared for new technology and regulation, both through the platform’s flexibility and BlackBerry’s support.”

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