Beltrami County uses the opt-in Emergency Notification System known as CodeRED, and has for years, according to a release.
Beltrami County Emergency Management Director Chris Muller says that last week, as the wildfire was approaching residential areas, authorities were able to alert nearby residents in the immediate area of the fire.
Only residents within an area most impacted by the fire, a one-by-two-mile grid, were alerted directly.
Muller said this selectiveness was to prevent confusion, but CodeRED app users can view all alerts in the area.
CodeRED is an opt-in system that residents can enroll in to receive emergency notifications.
Alerts can be delivered as a phone call, a text message, an email and on the CodeRED app.
Mobile users can text “Beltrami” to 99411 to enroll, or visit the website.
