Leader staff

The Town of Slave Lake’s new system of alerting citizens to things that are going on is in business. Aug. 22 was the launch day.

It’s called ‘Voyent Alert,’ and here’s what the town said last week in a news release is different about it than whatever it replaced:

“Rather than receive a generic message about an event taking place in town, Voyent Alert will provide detailed information…”

These details could include an event’s distance from the user, maps of the affected areas and next steps. For example, it could be a reminder that vehicles need to be moved for snow plowing on a specific street, or instructions to the nearest evacuation shelter in the case of an emergency that requires such action.

The result, the news release goes on to say is that residents will be able “to make better, more informed decisions.”

The downloadable application includes a map, on which the user can ‘pin’ various important locations. If an alert is sent for an area where a pin is located, the user will be notified. Categories can be selected or unselected, depending on what the user wants to be notified about.

The service is free, easy to use and anonymous, says the news release.

Downloading the app is only one of the options. It’s the recommended one, says town communications coordinator Jordan Schenkelberg, but you can also sign up to receive the alerts via text message, email or by a phone call.

More information on Voyent Alert can be found on the town’s website, slavelake.ca.