BE-Alert to distribute alert messages via digital notice boards

BE Alert, the alert system used by the Belgian government to send warnings in an emergency situation, will from now on also distribute messages via digital notice boards. The National Crisis Centre (NCCN) announced this on Monday, in the presence of minister of the interior Annelies Verlinden. 

Since 2017, BE Alert has been sending alarm messages via text message, e-mail and voice call in case of fire, electricity failure or drinking water problems to anyone affected by the emergency. From now on, these alert messages will also be communicated via digital notice boards. In the presence of minister of the interior Annelies Verlinden (CD&V), a first message was published on Monday on information boards in the municipality of Waterloo.

Common Alerting Protocol

The new functionality is based on an international standard for warning messages (CAP, Common Alerting Protocol). It allows the authorities to display messages on information screens in public places, sports centres, streets, etc. A first cooperation was concluded with Mediawind, a company from Nijvel whose technology is present in about 6,500 digital notice boards in Belgium.

In the future, the National Crisis Centre would like to enter into more partnerships, to have messages appear on digital notice boards, but also on GPS devices and in apps on smartphones.

At the moment, about 85 percent of the Belgian municipalities are connected to the alarm system. It has been used more than 650 times since its launch to warn of an emergency situation. 

To ensure the system becomes established, the Crisis Centre urges citizens to sign up for the BE-Alerts. Currently, more than one million addresses have been registered.

(AHU)

© BELGA