Clear Alerts Save Lives—Confusing Ones Create Chaos

What happens when an emergency alert is sent without enough information—or with the wrong information altogether?

In this episode of The Alerting Authority, Jeannette Sutton and Eddie Bertola break down a real-world emergency alert involving a reported firearm and examine how incomplete messaging, vague locations, unclear protective actions, and inconsistent follow-up alerts can confuse the public and contribute to over-alerting and alert fatigue.

Drawing from peer-reviewed research and real alerting experience, the conversation explores what over-alerting actually means, how relevancy and content shape public response, why jargon like “shelter in place” can fail, and how poor messaging can overwhelm 911 centers while increasing fear rather than safety.

Listeners will learn practical, evidence-based strategies for writing clearer, more effective alerts—including what information must be included, how to structure messages, and why post-alert “all clear” notifications matter just as much as the initial warning.

This episode is essential listening for emergency managers, law enforcement, public safety officials, and anyone responsible for issuing alerts to their community.

Sponsored by HQE Systems, a disabled veteran-owned, full-service alert origination software provider specializing in cutting-edge life safety and mass notification solutions