Caller ID for Reverse 911 not recognizable for residents
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COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- The FBI is now searching for the armed kidnapper who left parts of Gleneagle on alert last week.
The El Paso County Sheriff's Office says it has heard nothing of his where abouts since Friday.
During the search for that armed kidnapper, the sheriff's office relied on a Reverse 911 system to notify residents that a suspect was on the loose.
Dispatchers sent out several warnings to residents with land lines or cell phones registered to a computerized alert system.
They use the alerts to protect people near a dangerous situation, and to get residents on the lookout, but not everyone got the message.
When Reverse 911 calls, sheriff's deputies rely on everyone getting the message.
"We rely on the public to be our eyes and ears in that neighborhood," says Undersheriff Paul Zani. "When they report a sighting of the suspect it helps us narrow in our search."
The computerized system will tell you exactly what the emergency situation is and how you should respond.
It was a key tool on Friday, Sept.12, when an armed kidnapper was potentially in the Gleneagle area.
The only problem, a lot of people didn't get the message for one of two reasons.
The first, those with landlines and caller ID didn't recognize who was on the line.
"Neighbor across the street looked at the caller ID, didn't even pick it up. Another neighbor across the street picked it up wondered what the heck it was, nothing happened, hung up," says Scott Miller. "Wouldn't you like to know it was actually a Reverse 911 call?" he asks.
"We're looking into that and 911 assures me they'll have it fixed shortly," says Undersheriff Zani.
The second, about one in eight households rely on cell phones, but to get a Reverse 911 call on your cell, the number needs to be registered.
"I didn't have any idea at all until the next morning when I saw it on the news," says Lynn Galik.
You can register your cell phone whether or not it's local and even if you have a land line. You are allowed up to two cell phones per household.
All you do is go to the El Paso Teller website. Click on the "Cell Phone/Reverse 911" tab.
That is going to bring up a sheet for all of your personal information. Submit that form.
Then a dispatcher will call to verify the information is correct, and from there you are good to go.
"If you are at work and there is an emergency in your neighborhood, you will be notified via cell phone no matter where you are," says Undersheriff Zani.
Sheriff's deputies are asking everyone to sign up.
They say it could make all the difference the next time Reverse 911 is used.
El Paso County uses Reverse 911 about twice a month.
The system to register cell phones has been in place a little over a year.
It has only been a couple months since the system has accepted long distance numbers.
Click on the move camera/video icon to view this story as it aired on FOX 21 News.
