LAKE LOUISE –Parks Canada has launched the Voyent Alert mass emergency notification system in the national park communities of Lake Louise and Field.
Parks Canada officials say notifications will be sent for critical events such as wildfires and floods and important advisories like public safety notices and impacts to transit.
“Parks Canada recognizes the importance of having the ability to disseminate timely and effective emergency notifications to residents, staff and visitors,” said James Eastham, a spokesperson for Lake Louise, Yoho and Kootenay field unit.
“The Voyent Alert system allows individuals to register for notifications in areas that are important to them.”
Regionally, the Voyent Alert system is used by the municipalities of Banff and Canmore as well as the Village of Radium Hot Springs in B.C.
“Parks Canada launching the system in Lake Louise and Field allows for regional connectivity of the system,” said Eastham.
“This means that visitors can travel from Calgary to Field and only need to subscribe to alerts through one system.”
Voyent Alert uses geospatial technology to send personalized alerts about emergencies.
Rather than receive a generic message about an incident, Voyent Alert will provide detailed information that is relevant to subscribers.
Separate from Alberta Emergency Alert and national public alerting systems, which provide general warnings in order to effectively notify a variety of users in their regions, Voyent Alert works on a more detailed level.
“Alerts provide necessary details including an event’s location, maps of the impacted areas, and suggested next steps,” Eastham said.
“The result is that subscribers receive a message with the most important information, allowing them to make better, more informed decisions.”
Registration is free, simple, and anonymous. Alerts can be received through SMS text, email, Voyent Alert app, pre-recorded message on a mobile phone or landline.
To register, download the Voyent Alert App from the App Store or Google Play or visit https://ca.voyent-alert.com/vras/client.html#!/registration.
As of Wednesday (July 10), the MD of Bighorn has 732 subscribers and the Town of Canmore has 3,582. The Town of Banff had 5,689.
