New app to help emergency alerts reach more Nova Scotians: province

NS Alerts is an app that can provide emergency alerts in areas of the province with low cellular coverage.

A new app is launching in Nova Scotia Thursday that can provide emergency alerts in areas of the province with low cellular coverage.

NS Alert is a free download from the Apple App Store and Google Play store. The province says the app works with mobile phones using older 3G networks or Wi-Fi, whereas the current national Alert Ready system requires LTE or 5G networks.

“We’re experiencing more and more emergency situations in Nova Scotia. The right alert at the right time can make all the difference,” said Kim Masland, minister of Emergency Management, in a news release from the province.

“NS Alert will be particularly crucial for people living in rural areas, while we continue to work with our partners on the Cellular for Nova Scotia Program.”

The province says the app is customizable and Nova Scotians can choose the type of alert they want to receive:

• critical alerts, which notify people about events and disruptions that may impact public safety; these are known as “broadcast-intrusive” alerts, which include an alert tone and message and interrupts use of the phone (the tone may not be heard depending on the phone’s settings)
• advisory alerts, which let people know about things like re-entering an area after an evacuation and road closures; these are similar to notifications users may receive from other apps

Users may choose to receive one or both types of alerts. They can also select the communities they want to be notified about, as well as choosing to receive alerts about the community they are currently in.

“People with the NS Alert app installed who are connected to an LTE or 5G network at the time of a broadcast-intrusive alert may receive two alerts for their location – one from NS Alert and another from the national Alert Ready broadcast system; areas not covered by Alert Ready will only receive one alert from NS Alert,” reads the release.

Users can receive the alerts anywhere in Canada and the alerts can be issued in English or French, which is based on the phone’s language settings. The app can also translate alerts to 32 other languages.

“With the enhancements to the alerting system, Nova Scotians will be provided with enhanced access to alerts with ease and reliability,” said Greg Jones, president of the Fire Service Association of Nova Scotia.

Nova Scotia spent $1 million to develop and operate NS Alert with Public Emergency Alerting Services Inc., an Alberta-based vendor.

The province says the implementation of NS Alert “helps advance recommendation P. 22 of the Mass Casualty Commission’s final report, relating to public education about public warnings.”

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page