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Computer Flaw ID'd In Larimer Warning Failure

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Jun 17, 2009 12:52 pm US/Mountain

Computer Flaw ID'd In Larimer Warning Failure

DENVER (AP/CBS4) ― Larimer County officials have identified a computer problem that they say was partly responsible for the failure of an emergency alert system during a tornado warning.

The system was supposed to notify about 100,000 phone numbers and e-mail addresses during the warning on Monday, but it didn't.

Officials said Wednesday the system identifies geographic areas to be notified but was unable to deliver the warnings when the areas overlapped.

Kimberly Culp, a spokeswoman for the Larimer Emergency Telephone Authority, said an employee entering data for the areas created the overlap, but the computer didn't issue an error message until the worker tried to send out the alert and failed.

She said the worker tried to fix the mistake but by the time officials figured out the problem there was no need to send an alert anymore.

The system was developed by Glendale, Calif.-based Everbridge Inc. Larimer County agencies paid $150,000 to start the system plus $95,000 a year to be able to send out an unlimited number of alerts.

Culp said the county is working with Everbridge to make sure the computers send an error message as soon as a worker enters overlapping data.

Emergency Text Alerts In Colorado

Several municipalities in Colorado are using or considering using text alerts to alert residents about emergencies. Check with your local city or town office for details on whether they offer a system.

Colorado State University and the University of Colorado are among the colleges that send text messages to students when there are emergencies.

Residents in Jefferson, Broomfield and Douglas counties and in Aurora can register their wireless phone numbers to receive the emergency management messages. Denver is considering an electronic message warning system.

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(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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