Lauderdale County residents will soon be able to receive severe weather alerts and other emergency information on their cell phones, computers and other devices.

The Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors approved the purchase of the Roam Secure Alert Network, a system that went into service with the Newton County Emergency Management Agency in Decatur on Feb. 1. The system was introduced to the supervisors during Thursday’s work session.

“This is a very unique system that is going to enhance the quality of our safety,” said District 2 Supervisor Jimmie Smith. “Residents will be able to receive information such as severe weather, traffic accidents, and roads and bridges that are out.”

Roam Secure Alert Network is owned and operated by Roam Secure of Washington, D.C. It is the same system provided to Capitol Hill legislators, which has been used since 9/11 to advise of emergency situations around the Washington, D.C. area.

Cost of the network is $30,000. The program will be available to residents at no cost, Smith said.

“Once it is set up on our Web site, residents can sign up for it,” he said. “Anytime there is an emergency situation, they will receive an alert on their cell phone or phone, then they can go on the Internet for information.”

Also discussed during the meeting was the repair of an emergency repeater in Lauderdale County.

“A tower that is used to page firefighters is down and will be down for at least seven days,” Smith said.

The supervisors approved to repair the repeater at a cost of $3,000.

“We thought we could buy a new one, but it will take longer to receive a newer one than to ship the old one and have it rebuilt,” Smith said.

The supervisor said the downed repeater is a good example of how Roam Secure would be useful.

“If we had the Roam Secure system installed, we would be able to use it to contact the firefighters; it would serve as a backup system as well,” Smith said. “This is really going to be an asset to our safety system.”