TL;DR: Jackson County Is Moving Emergency Alerts to SiRcom Before CodeRED Goes Dark Sept. 30
TL;DR: Jackson County Emergency Management is replacing CodeRED with SiRcom Smart Alerts, and residents must create a SiRcom account by Sept. 30 to keep receiving local emergency and weather warnings.
Jackson County Emergency Management Director Joshua Whitcomb announced the switch to SiRcom Smart Alerts in a report published Sept. 5, 2026, according to the Jackson County Sentinel article titled "Jackson County EMA launches new emergency notification system | News | jcsentinel.com." The agency described SiRcom Smart Alerts as a mass notification platform intended to deliver fast, dependable guidance before, during and after local emergencies. During the changeover the county has kept CodeRED Weather Warning messages operating, but after Sept. 30 CodeRED will stop sending emergency or weather messages to Jackson County residents.
Why The County Is Changing Alert Platforms Now
Whitcomb said the move from CodeRED to SiRcom Smart Alerts gives Jackson County EMA a direct channel to residents for time-sensitive incidents. According to the Jackson County Sentinel, the director presented SiRcom as an additional direct link between the agency and the public, not as a substitute for every other warning method.
The director noted that outdoor warning sirens, television, radio and social media all matter for public warning, but none of those channels by itself ensures that every person hears a warning when conditions shift. That assessment is central to the county's preparedness message: households need overlapping ways to learn about danger.
The timing reflects a broader national pattern of CodeRED retirements. According to the KDH News article titled "CTCOG and local municipalities replace CodeRED emergency notification system | Local News | kdhnews.com," the Central Texas Council of Governments started a new regional notification service through Everbridge on Sept. 1 to replace CodeRED across its region. That report described Everbridge as a more consistent and dependable route for emergency and community messages to residents, businesses and visitors. Jackson County's shift to a different vendor, SiRcom, follows the same logic of replacing CodeRED with a newer mass-notification environment.
Whitcomb said the Jackson County overlap period was deliberate. According to the Jackson County Sentinel, moving a whole county to a new platform takes time, and the agency did not want households to face an avoidable break in warning coverage while they enrolled in the replacement. Operating both services also let EMA staff watch the new platform, verify operation, find adjustments, and allow more time for people to create or update SiRcom accounts.
What SiRcom Will Send To Jackson County Residents
According to the Jackson County Sentinel, SiRcom allows Jackson County EMA to issue time-sensitive messages about severe weather, flooding, road closures, evacuations, shelter-in-place instructions, missing persons, public safety threats, utility disruptions and other community emergencies.
Whitcomb explained that messages can carry practical protective instructions rather than only a hazard name. According to the Jackson County Sentinel, SiRcom notices can identify where an event is happening, which neighborhoods or zones are affected, what protective steps residents should take, whether to evacuate or shelter in place, which roads, bridges or areas to avoid, where shelters, warming centers or emergency services are open, and when conditions have changed or the event has ended.
That level of detail is important for preparedness planning because protective decisions often depend on location and timing. A household that knows which roads to avoid, where assistance is available, and whether officials advise evacuation or sheltering can act faster and avoid traveling into a hazard area.
How Delivery Works: Text, Call Or Email
Delivery method depends on the incident and the contact details supplied at registration, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. Whitcomb said alerts may arrive by text message, telephone call or email.
Residents control part of that outcome through the contact and preference information they maintain. According to the Jackson County Sentinel, Whitcomb urged residents to keep telephone numbers, email addresses, home address, notification preferences, access and functional needs details, and storm-shelter details accurate. Outdated numbers or addresses reduce the chance that a geographically targeted warning reaches the right household.
Do Not Rely On One Warning Source
Whitcomb stressed that residents should never depend on a single source for emergency information, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. He said SiRcom should be used alongside NOAA Weather Radio, local television and radio, trusted weather applications and official Jackson County EMA communications.
For preparedness households, that means SiRcom becomes one layer in a redundant system. A bedside weather radio with battery backup, a trusted weather app with location services enabled, and awareness of local broadcast coverage remain important alongside the new county alerts. If one path fails during power loss, network congestion or an overnight event, another path may still deliver the warning.
Resident Profiles Give Responders Better Situational Awareness
SiRcom also lets residents supply information that may matter during response, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. When residents keep details current, emergency management officials can better understand who and what may be inside an impacted area.
According to the Jackson County Sentinel, that improved awareness can help first responders make faster, better-informed choices during severe weather, flooding, tornadoes, extended power outages, hazardous-material incidents and other disasters. Whitcomb said the details can be especially useful when normal communications are disrupted or when crews are conducting searches, welfare checks, damage assessments or neighborhood response operations.
The information does not replace calling 911 or directly asking for emergency help, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. Residents still need to request assistance through emergency lines when they need immediate aid. The stored profile instead gives responders background that may help when systems are stressed.
Access And Functional Needs Registry
A major feature in the new platform is voluntary access and functional needs information. According to the Jackson County Sentinel, users can list mobility or transportation needs, electricity-dependent medical equipment, communication assistance needs, developmental or cognitive disabilities, in-home support or caregiver assistance, and other circumstances that could affect the ability to receive warnings, evacuate, shelter safely or recover after a disaster.
Whitcomb said sharing that information helps Jackson County EMA understand community needs and supports stronger planning and response, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. During a disaster, responders may confront damaged roads, blocked access, widespread power outages and a high volume of calls for help. Accurate advance information can help agencies identify locations where extra help may be required and prioritize limited resources based on conditions at the time.
Registration does not promise immediate assistance and does not replace a personal emergency plan, Whitcomb emphasized, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. Residents with access and functional needs should still maintain personal preparedness plans, backup power arrangements when possible, medication supplies, transportation options and a dependable support network.
For households supporting older adults, people with disabilities, or those using powered medical devices, that distinction matters. The registry can inform planning, but families still need their own power backup approach where feasible, extra medication on hand, transport alternatives, and neighbors or caregivers who can check in.
Storm Shelter And Safe Room Registration
Whitcomb also encouraged residents to register in-home storm shelters and safe rooms through SiRcom, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. After a tornado or other destructive event, damaged houses may be hard to recognize, addresses may be blocked, and shelter entrances may be buried under debris.
Registering a shelter provides emergency management, first responders and dispatch centers with location details that may aid search-and-rescue work, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. The record helps crews know where to look when structures are destroyed or street markers are gone.
Registration alone does not alert 911 if someone becomes trapped, Whitcomb warned, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. Occupants should still call or text 911 when possible with their location and condition during an emergency.
Critical Deadline: Sept. 30 CodeRED Shutoff For Jackson County
During the transition, the EMA kept CodeRED Weather Warning alerts running, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. After Sept. 30, CodeRED will no longer deliver emergency or weather alerts to Jackson County residents.
The parallel experience in Texas shows why re-enrollment steps deserve attention. According to KDH News, residents already listed in CodeRED were to have information moved to Everbridge, yet they still needed to create an Everbridge account and set personal notification preferences. The City of Killeen example in the same KDH News report also illustrates that vendor changes can require fresh accounts and new preference selections, after that city moved from CodeRED to CivicPlus Mass Notification, also called Resident Portal, following use of CivicPlus Notify Me service from 2024-2025.
Jackson County residents should therefore treat SiRcom enrollment as a required action rather than an automatic transfer.
How To Subscribe, Update Or View Alerts
According to the Jackson County Sentinel, subscription is available at https://jackson.sircom.org/subscribe. Account review and updates are available at https://jackson.sircom.org/account. A public alert feed can be viewed at https://jackson.sircom.org/feed.
Whitcomb said residents should verify that phone numbers, email addresses, home address, notification choices, access and functional needs entries, and storm-shelter details stay correct, according to the Jackson County Sentinel. Households that move, change numbers, add a shelter, or develop a new medical or mobility need should update the profile promptly so targeted messages and responder awareness reflect current conditions.