Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson has signed an executive order aimed at clearing up confusion surrounding AlertSeattle, the city’s voluntary emergency notification service. The system was not activated after a July 26 shooting at the Bite of Seattle festival that left three people dead and at least four wounded. Police reported the incident about half an hour later, but details did not emerge until a press conference nearly five hours afterward, prompting sharp criticism of city officials and the police.
Correspondence among city officials showed that different agencies did not understand who was responsible for sending an alert. Police, the mayor’s office and emergency response agencies shifted responsibility among themselves. Meanwhile, the Office of Emergency Management said it had offered to help send a notification, but police did not take up the offer. Wilson said AlertSeattle should have been used that evening and will await the results of an independent investigation by Inspector General Lisa Judge to determine what caused the failure.
The new order requires city agencies to develop clear instructions specifying who sends alerts, when they are sent and whom they should reach, as well as to train key employees to use the system. In the event of another mass shooting, the city promises to notify AlertSeattle subscribers and, together with the county, send messages to phones located in the area of the incident. The document also calls for preparations for extreme heat, floods, wildfires and severe storms; expanded public outreach; training for schoolchildren; and the development of plans for individual neighborhoods—particularly amid uncertainty over federal assistance after disasters.
Based on: Seattle mayor orders emergency alerts protocol after delayed mass shooting response