Washington County will have a new way of handling emergencies.  Cara Sorrells with the Washington County Safety Center says it will begin using an emergency notification system capable of alerting you by landline or cell phone, text message, or email.

She says the Wireless Emergency Notification System alerts are messages that will alert residents of an emergency situation, ask them to take appropriate action, or both.  Weather warning alerts from the National Weather Service will also be sent out through the system.

Sorrells says the notification service is free, but text messaging rates from cell phone providers do apply.  Look here for a link to the webpage where you can sign up for the service.