Emergency alert sign-ups remain low years after launch of online system in Santa Barbara County

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – A direct connection between emergency leaders in Santa Barbara and the public is in place but the number of people that have signed up is very low.

The Office of Emergency Management Director Kelly Hubbard said only about 15% of the population has signed up. She said the online registration is simple, fast and you can enter in more than one number.

The messages sent out can be in several forms including a direct text message and in both English and Spanish.

Hubbard said, some residents have been concerned about how their information will be used or reused. She said it is only used for the emergency notification purpose. "Information can not be used for anything else it can not be used for political campaigns, it can not be used– we can't turn it over to other government agencies. If we have community members who are concerned about the information turned over to the Department of Homeland Security of anything like that we don't, we can't."

Hubbard also said the South County has more people registered than any area in Santa Barbara County. It also has had some of the largest disaster issues in recent years including major fires and flooding.

To sign up online, visit ReadySBC.org.