City's Phone Alert System Warned
Targeted Residents of Danger

By Jim Sullinger - KansasCity.com

Tuesday, August 10, 2010
When Tiffani L. Hayes was shot and killed Thursday, Olathe police speculated that the alleged shooter might attempt to return to his home.

That address was pinpointed and Olathe residents living within a quarter-mile radius of that home were warned to be on the lookout. The warning came from Olathe’s CityWatch system, which sends phone message to residents warning them about a potentially dangerous situation.

The city has had the system since 2004 but its use had been limited. This year the city purchased an updated version with lots of bells and whistles that the system didn’t have six years ago.

Minutes after the shooting, police called Carol McCoy, the city’s business services manager, who was in her car but close to the police station. They wanted her to send out an alert to residents. She found a city computer at the police station, logged into the CityWatch system and recorded a message. She selected the target area for the message and 24 phones lines went to work getting out the word. Within about 40 minutes, 921 calls were completed.

After a three-hour manhunt Thursday, officers arrested Terry R. Hayes, Tiffani Hayes’ estranged husband. Terry Hayes has been charged with first-degree murder. McCoy said the updated system was used earlier this summer when police wanted to warn residents about auto burglaries.

They urged homeowners to lock their vehicles when left unattended. Sgt. Johnny Roland of the Olathe Police Department said the system is a valuable tool in reaching residents that need information in an emergency. It also can be used to alert a homeowner that water to the residence is about to be turned off because of an unpaid bill.

McCoy said she could designate any area on the map and the system will call the numbers in that area. She can also use any city computer to access the system in an emergency. “It can make calls based on many, many different criteria,” she said. For example, she said the fire department can use the system to call all or selected fire fighters.

The system can call both land line and cell phones as long as the number is in the system. However, McCoy explained that no database of cell phone numbers exists right now. Shortly after Jan. 1, the city plans to have a website for people with cell phones to use for registering their phone number so they can receive emergency notifications from CityWatch.