An urgent alert was sent out a few days ago. Fortunately, the situation was resolved without further incident. The Spink County Sheriff’s Department is encouraging more area residents to sign up for Nixle alerts. “If you can help one person, the system is well worth it.” Adam Hansen, City Finance officer, said.
Nixle is a messaging app that sends out alerts via text and email to residents of a given area. Jessica Jolly, a dispatcher with Spink Co. Sheriff’s Dept. stated the importance of the program. “You can get out alerts as fast as possible to the full range.” She continued, “Not everyone reads the news or their email. But phones are handy. They are more likely to be looked at.”
The alerts may be in regard to emergent situations, weather, or things like the food truck’s arrival date. “There are three types of notifications” Jolly said.

Nixle alerts may be: Emergency alerts, Advisories, or Community Information. Notifications are about things that are specifically to interest of area residents. Jolly explained that the Sheriff’s Department may get information from various sources, such as State Radio. Pertinent information is passed on to residents.
Through your cellphone, you get federal alerts via FEMA’s system. These alerts include Amber Alerts, National Alerts, Imminent Threats, and Public Safety Messages. These alerts can be blocked, with the exception of National Alerts – which come from the White House or FEMA.
Nixle is what local agencies use to spread information quickly.
Go to local.nixle.com/register/ - or
www.Nixle.com, and sign up.
The Spink Co. Sheriff’s office has been using Nixle since 2012, which is also when the FEMA alerts began. Nixle alerts can be opted out of at any time.