Frequently Asked Questions
How does Alert Charleston County work?
Once an emergency has occurred and officials authorize an emergency notification message to the public, dispatchers will use a computer program to highlight the affected area(s) on a digital map. Once the affected area is determined, the system will send the emergency message to all numbers associated with the addresses located in the highlighted area.
Who can issue an Alert Charleston County notification?
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office and the Charleston County Emergency Management Department have the authority to issue an Alert Charleston County notification.
What types of incidents will you notify residents of?
Alert Charleston County can be utilized for a variety of emergency notifications including missing person alerts, emergency evacuation notices, and shelter in place warnings (example: chemical spill). For example, San Diego County in California used a similar system to notify residents about dangers related to the November 2007 wildfires.
Who can register?
Anyone who is associated with a Charleston County address can register. For example, if you live in Dorchester County but work in Charleston County and want to be notified regarding any alerts for your office’s area, you can register your phone number with your office address in Charleston County.
Who needs to register? Don’t you already have my phone number?
Charleston County already has a database of publicly listed landline phone numbers. However, anyone with an unlisted landline number, a cell phone number, or a broadband phone service number (Comcast Digital Voice®, Vonage®, etc.) must register in order to receive alerts. Also, anyone who has moved in the last six months should register to receive alerts. Even though Charleston County Government has a database of publicly listed landline phone numbers, we strongly encourage everyone to go online and register to be sure we have up-to-date information. Registering for this program will NOT make your number available to anyone else.
Can I register more than one number for myself and my family?
Each address can have multiple phone numbers associated with it. For example, a husband and wife can separately register their cell phone numbers tied to their daughter’s school address. Each phone number can only have one address associated with it. For example, you may register your home phone number with your home address, your work phone number with your work address, and your cell number with another address, such as the address of your child’s school or daycare.
I don’t have a home telephone number, only a cell phone. Can I still register?
Charleston County already has a database of publicly listed landline phone numbers, but anyone with a cell phone number must register in order to receive alerts. Enter your cell phone number at the top of the form. It will be tied to whatever address you enter in the address fields.
How do I know if I’m registered?
Once you complete and submit the registration form online, you will see a screen telling you that your information will be added to our system.
Will I get any test messages?
I received a text message from “2SMS” right after I received my first text message from the County. Why did I receive this second message?
The secondary message from “2SMS” is a message from the County’s text messaging system to notify you that you may be charged by your cell phone company for receiving text messages from Alert Charleston County.
Will my information be kept confidential?
Charleston County will not share the information you provide with any agency or organization outside of Charleston County Government, and will only use it for the notification purposes stated. Your information is housed on a secure server accessible only by approved Charleston County personnel.
Can I register if I live out of town?
If you wish to be notified of an event affecting loved ones in Charleston County or affecting property you own in Charleston County, you may do so by entering the local address of the property or loved one. The notification number may be a long distance number, but the address must be within the County’s borders.
Why do you request an e-mail address?
Alerts are not sent out via e-mail. However, we ask you for an e-mail address in the event there is a problem entering your phone number into our system. In that case, we may contact you via e-mail to correct the entry. Charleston County may also send yearly e-mails to remind you to update your information in the system.
If I move out of Charleston County, what do I do?
To stop receiving notifications, e-mail alert@charlestoncounty.org.
How do I unsubscribe from the system?
To stop receiving notifications, e-mail alert@charlestoncounty.org.
If I move somewhere else within Charleston County, do I need to register at the new address?
Yes. Even if you don’t change your phone number when you move, we need to have your updated address in our database. If you register your new address with the same phone number, the system will update your information. The address that is registered for your phone number is very important because an emergency situation may only occur in a neighborhood or localized area. Only the phone numbers registered under addresses in this specific area will be notified of the emergency.
How will I recognize an alert message phone call on my caller ID?
An Alert Charleston County notification phone call will appear on your caller ID as calling from (843) 202-6599. Also, if you have a caller ID unit that will display the calling party as well as the phone number, it will display as “Alert Charleston County.”
What if I’m not home or can’t answer my phone?
If you don’t answer the phone call from Alert Charleston County and depending on the anticipated length of the emergency, the system may leave the same message on your voicemail that you would have heard if you had answered the call.
What cell phone providers accept Alert Charleston County text messages?
Currently, text messages can be sent to subscribers of the following cell phone providers: Alltel; AT&T Wireless (formerly Cingular Wireless); Nextel; Sprint; T-Mobile; U.S. Cellular; and Verizon Wireless. Normal text messaging rates may apply.
Can I be sent a text message in addition to the voice recording?
At the bottom of the registration form there is a place to enter your cell phone if you wish to receive text message notification in addition to the voice recording. The cell number you enter will be tied to the address you enter on the form.
If I receive a text message, will I be charged by my cell phone provider?
You will not receive text messages unless you indicate you want text messages on your registration form. If you do choose to receive text messages, your normal text messaging charges will apply whenever you are sent a text message from Alert Charleston County. You may opt out of receiving text messages from the County the first time you receive a text message by responding “no” to the text message asking you if you want to continue with the service. At any later point, you can opt out by e-mailing your request to alert@charlestoncounty.org.
When I receive a notification, what action do I need to take?
Each Alert Charleston County emergency notification is different, based upon the event. It is important to listen to the message carefully to find out if you are asked to take any action. DO NOT call 911 to ask them to repeat the message. Turn to a local television or radio station to find out more information about events affecting you and your community.
I just began receiving text messages and/or phone calls from Alert Charleston County but I never registered for this service. Why am I receiving them and how do I unsubscribe?
Your cell phone number or unlisted landline number may have been previously registered with Alert Charleston County by a past user. To stop further text messages or calls to your cell phone or unlisted landline number, send an e-mail to alert@charlestoncounty.org to ask to be removed from our database. If you are receiving the calls on a publicly listed number, it is likely part of our database update. You can e-mail or call as noted above, but your publicly listed number will likely be reentered in our system the next time we order an updated phone number database.
How to register to receive alert notifications:
There are two ways residents can register for Alert Charleston County to receive emergency notifications:
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The easiest way to register is to visit alert.charlestoncounty.org, and fill out the short online registration form. If you do not have access to a computer, you can visit any Charleston County Library branch and sign-up through alert.charlestoncounty.org by using the library computers.
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Fill out and submit a paper registration form at drop boxes located in one of the Charleston County Service Centers:
East Cooper Service Center – Treasurer’s Office
1189 Iron Bridge Road
Mount Pleasant, SC 29464
North Area Service Center
Lonnie Hamilton, III Public Services Building
4045 Bridge View Drive
North Charleston, SC 29405
St. Paul Service Center – Treasurer’s Office
5962 Highway 165
Ravenel, SC 29470
Please try registering online at alert.charlestoncounty.org. If you have difficulties registering or do not find help in this list of frequently asked questions, contact Alert Charleston County at alert@charlestoncounty.org or (843) 202-6599.
- Alert Charleston County is an official program of Charleston County Government -