Crisis in Bridgewater? Check Your Phone

It's free for the township, easy to use and will hopefully make for an easier way of notifying Bridgewater's more than 40,000 residents in any kind of situation.

The Bridgewater Township Police Department recently began to use the Nixle system, a reverse notification service that uses text messages and e-mails to communicate with subscribers about emergencies and other situations.

According to Senior Dispatcher Cathy Hamilton, who was a proponent of the Nixle system, the department had been researching different notification systems for years, but was having difficulty finding ones that did not charge the department a fee whenever it sent out a message.

"With a township the size of Bridgewater, those fees can add up quickly," she said.

After learning about other Somerset County towns that were using the Nixle system, Hamilton said, the police department looked into it, and decided to apply to be part. At this point, she said, Raritan, Hillsborough and Branchburg are all part of the system.

"Several months ago, it came to our attention that surrounding towns were using Nixle," she said. "The system seems to work, and the cost to the township is zero."

Hamilton said the department applied for the service, and was approved. The service is free to the township, she said, and the only fees that apply are for text messaging and e-mails that could be issued through a subscriber's cell phone carrier. Those fees would be paid by the individual residents using the service.

Residents are advised to check with their own cell phone carriers before signing on with Nixle to determine any fees that would come through text messages or e-mails.

"It does not cost anything to the township or the police department," Hamilton said. "The subscriber is subject to standard text messaging and the e-mail fees."

"And all messages that the police department publishes are also available for viewing through the Nixle website," she added.

The system itself allows the police department to create community notifications quickly. The messages are sent to those in specific geographic areas—in this case Bridgewater.

"The police department can notify the public when there is a power outage, a water main break, a road closure or police activity in a specific area," Hamilton said. "For example, we could notify residents in the Martinsville area that there have been numerous black bear sightings. We could also include an informational statement."

Hamilton said residents can sign up to be subscribers at the Nixle website. There, they can opt to receive messages either through a cell phone, e-mail or both.

For the police department, Hamilton said, a reverse notification system can be very successful, and is useful in informing residents quickly and easily. She said the department considers cost before it signs on to any kind of program, and this one being free made it an easy choice.

"Once the program is activated, we can judge the success or failure by public opinion," she said. "In this age of budget cuts and instant communications, any way for the police department to better inform residents without incurring any costs is a good thing."