CT Alert: How to Stay Informed During Hurricanes, Nor'easters and Emergencies

Hurricane Sandy bowled through Connecticut on the anniversary of the October snowstorm and a week later a Nor'easter dropped snow in the Farmington Valley and West Hartford.

During Sandy, many towns sent emergency alerts to their residents though CT alert. Instead of waiting until the next storm and possible power or Internet outages to sign up, here's how you can do so right now to be preapred and stay informed.

As Avon officials prepared for Hurricane Sandy at the end of October, Avon Emergency Management Director James DiPace recommended that residents sign up for Avon emergency notifications through CT Alert Emergency Notification System on the state website at www.CTAlert.gov.

The service is a reverse 911 database that calls the landlines of anyone signed up with a voice message from town officials with the latest updates during emergency situations or natural disasters. You can sign up for alerts from multiple towns in the state, whether it's where you reside, where your family lives or it's the town you work in.

You can also sign up to receive notifications on cell phones, pagers and via email and prioritize where you want to receive the messages first.

There are other ways you can receive information from your towns. Simsbury also has a community alert system, which notifies residents about "time-critical notifications such as road closures, emergency shelter openings and commuity updates," according to a flyer proved to Patch by Simsbury Police Capt. Nicholas Boulter. Simsbury residents can sign up at www.simsbury-ct.gov/alerts

Boulter wrote in an email to Patch that he encourages Simsbury residents to sign up for both Simsbury community alerts and CTAlert.

Are you signed up for CTAlert? Do you find the system useful? What other resources do you turn to for information during storms?