information from King County

King County residents who want to continue to receive notifications about severe weather, epidemics, terrorist activities, or other emergencies should register with the new system at www.kingcounty.gov/RPIN.

King County's Regional Public Information and Notification system, or RPIN, is a free system that can send emails, text and voice messages to residents during emergencies.

"More and more, people are taking emergency preparedness seriously," said Walt Hubbard, director of the King County Office of Emergency Management. "Taking simple steps now to make a family plan, build an emergency kit, know your neighbors, and register for alerts builds more resilient communities."

RPIN registration is easy, and information provided is never shared for other purposes. Go to www.kingcounty.gov/RPIN and click "Subscribe" to register your email address and phone number. Then select the type of alerts and geographical areas for which you wish to receive notifications. You can modify your profile or unsubscribe at any time.

King County and its network of emergency response organizations have used the system for years to communicate regional news alerts and information. As new technologies and social media platforms have evolved, the aging RPIN system needed a facelift. The new and improved RPIN allows subscribers to receive both voice and text alerts via email, cell phone, and landline. It also allows subscribers to better customize the notices they receive by geographic area and type.

Effective Oct. 1, visitors to the old RPIN site will be automatically redirected to the new site.

"RPIN is one of several public communication tools the King County Office of Emergency Management uses to keep residents informed," added Hubbard. "We will continue to use traditional and social media channels to help keep residents informed before, during, and after emergencies."

RPIN is administered by the Office of Emergency Management through a contract with AlertSense, formerly known as MyStateUSA.