Arvada West

Arvada Police Use Automated Phone System

Jul 14, 2000

Arvada Police Use Automated Phone System To Make Emergency Calls To Citizens.

The Arvada Police Department added a new weapon to its arsenal to alert businesses of crimes, schools of emergencies, and police employees of call-out situations.

The Communicator! can be activated from a computer stationed
within the Police Department, or can be launched remotely from the field. The system places and receives calls on 11 phone lines simultaneously, relaying recorded messages to businesses owners, school administrators, Arvada residents, and police personnel.

The system also utilizes a desktop computer mapping program to target specific residential areas of the City to provide emergency police information.

The Department recently used the Communicator! to alert Arvada grocery stores of a man apparently responsible for a string of purse thefts in the same day.

Police believe area schools will also benefit from this system. The Communicator! Will enable the Department to notify school officials of an emergency, alert the surrounding community regarding a school evacuation, and even alert residents to look for a missing child.