The federal government began shipping emergency radios to thousands of public schools nationwide last week in an effort to more quickly alert school personnel to an impending hazard, whether it鈥檚 a hurricane or a terrorist attack.
Three federal agencies鈥攖he departments of Commerce, Education, and Homeland Security鈥攁re spending roughly $5 million for the radios, which will be supplied to 96,000 schools, said Jordan St. John, a spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA oversees the operation of 950 short-range radio stations that broadcast news of hazards across the country.
The radios鈥攚hich traditionally have been used by police and other law-enforcement agencies鈥攂roadcast a range of warnings, from information about tornados and hurricanes, to missing children, to hazardous-materials accidents, Mr. St. John said.
鈥淲e already have the infrastructure in place to do this, and we鈥檝e been encouraging more and more public places to use these radios,鈥� Mr. St. John said.
The radio distribution to schools actually started last year, with roughly 16,000 schools in the largest cities receiving them. This fall, an additional 80,000 schools are getting the radios, Mr. St. John said.
Up to the Minute
NOAA鈥檚 radio system operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, broadcasting word of national, state, and local emergencies, even when other means of communication are disabled. The radios turn on automatically when an alert is about to be broadcast, Mr. St. John said.
Six states鈥擣lorida, Maryland, Tennessee, North Carolina, Washington, and Mississippi鈥攁lready required schools to have such radios, but those schools will receive new NOAA radios from the government, he said.
In Hillsborough County, Fla., the 192,000-student district has been using emergency radios for years as required by state law to receive weather alerts and, more recently, 鈥淎mber alerts鈥� that notify the public when a child has been abducted, said Stephen P. Hegarty, a spokesman for the district.
Bob Henry, the principal of the 400-student Naramake Elementary School in Norwalk, Conn., received his new emergency radio last week and placed it in his office, where either he or his secretary can hear it at any time. Snowstorms, flooding, and hurricanes are the weather events he most has to worry about.
鈥淵ou can have all the emergency plans you need, which we do,鈥� said Mr. Henry. 鈥淣ow, we鈥檝e got the immediate, up-to-the-minute information that will allow us to activate our emergency plans more quickly.鈥�
