What’s in a name?
I was asked the other day: "What’s wrong with you guys that you can’t be consistent with your spelling?". Our attorney told us we need consistency. We have it – but most people don’t see it. First Siren, Inc. is the name of our company. FirstSiren™ is the name of our first product.

That’s right, I said our first product. Henry, Ruben and I are very ambitious. We aren’t going to stop at FirstSiren™. Henry alluded to great things to come in 2006 and he’s not the only one with high hopes. We have grand plans. New markets to discover: new ideas to spread.

But first and foremost, we need want to make our first endeavor the best possible product on the market. We want to hear from everyone about their experience with FirstSiren™. Did the Alert about a street closing cause you to alter your route allowing you to make your appointment? Did the hazardous material warning you received cause you to call your family and warn them of the danger? Whatever your story – we want to hear about it. Why not share it in the FirstSiren™ forum? We also want to hear about how you would like us to improve FirstSiren™.

Yes, we’ve put months of thought and careful planning into it, but I’m sure we can improve upon it. What else would you like to see? How can we help you keep in touch with your community?

Looking forward to hearing from you all.

Chris

A little history

Why FirstSiren™? After Katrina, I was horrified to see the lack of communication available to the public: starting with the evacuation notices all the way to families not having a central place to communicate after the devastation.

During an evacuation it is not always easy to get the word out. People panic, everywhere you go, there is another do-gooder telling you information that is not always correct. Local law enforcement, try as they may, find it hard to reach every household so, the need for a service was born, that would allow the trusted word of the local law enforcement agency to be delivered directly to the panic stricken citizens. With the help of Henry and Ruben, we developed FirstSiren™ to fill that need.

But the problems of disaster don’t stop at the notification stage. There is also a lack of post disaster communication. Certainly there were many people and organizations that rose to the occasion and provided centralized hubs in the aftermath. To them, we are all thankful. It occurred to us that every person in every community should have a familiar place to connect after disaster hits. Similar to the way most families have a designated place to congregate in case they have to flee their house when fire strikes.

So not only did we build an alert system, we also provide a place for communities to connect on a daily basis, before, during and after a disaster. Please take some time to familiarize yourself and your family with our forum sections – think of them as your safety net. Tell family members from out of town about this service too. They don’t have to live in an area covered by FirstSiren™ to sign up for the service. They can have peace of mind knowing that there is place they can come knowing they can find you there.

I hope you find this service as helpful as it was intended to be – remember it’s always wise to be prepared.

Chris