Leitrim County Council has launched Leitrim Alerts, an app and accompanying website which facilitates the sending of Council updates, crime prevention alerts from An Garda Síochána, extreme weather warnings from Met Éireann, notices from Uisce Éireann, and community group notices to people in communities across County Leitrim.
Leitrim Alerts sends notifications based on location, meaning a person only gets community updates relevant to what is happening in their local area or community. Alerts can be received through a dedicated mobile phone app, email, or SMS text messages. This free-to-use app has no subscription fees or charges payable by the person receiving the message or alert.
The app is a collaborative project between the Leitrim Joint Policing Committee, Leitrim County Council, An Garda Síochána and local text alert groups. The development of Leitrim Alerts was funded by Leitrim County Council and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform under the Public Service Innovation Fund 2022. The system was developed by Pinpoint Alerts and will be managed by them for an initial three year period.
To register for the new service please visit www.LeitrimAlerts.ie. Subscribers will be required to enter their mobile phone number, email address and enter a password of their choosing. Subscribers can download the dedicated from the www.leitrimalerts.ie website or through the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store by searching for and installing ‘Leitrim Alerts’.
Subscribers who use the app and email can receive the full suite of available alerts, relating to extreme weather events, An Garda Síochána crime prevention alerts, Uisce Éireann notices, Council news and alerts, Council planning application updates, as well as community related messages from the Local Community Group of their choosing. Subscribers who opt to receive alerts via SMS text messages will receive a more limited service, only receiving alerts from An Garda Síochána and Met Éireann.
Welcoming the launch of Leitrim Alerts, Leitrim County Council Cathaoirleach Cllr. Ita Reynolds Flynn thanked those involved in bringing the system to fruition, saying, “Leitrim Alerts is a significant and welcome communication channel for the communities of Leitrim. It will allow for expedient communication of Garda alerts and other emergency or weather-related incidents, to residents of communities throughout Leitrim. It will provide a new and enhanced service to communities and in doing so will remove many of the financial or administrative burdens experienced by community groups in maintaining existing messaging systems.”
Superintendent Chris Grogan, Leitrim Garda District was also supportive of the new service, saying, “the ‘Leitrim Alerts’ system will be of great benefit to An Garda Siochána in County Leitrim, as it will enable the Gardaí to issue, in a timely manner, targeted alerts to community members, notifying of incidents that could potentially impact the community and its residents.”
Source: Leitrim County Council
