FEMA 4+

I understand the idea of an app as supplementary

I wish there was infirmation on where to find all this if the emergency includes not having any access to the web (and probably an afterthought because by the time you realize it it will be in full swing because you dont have any other way anymore in which you get warnings like weather reports or any contingency plans that the public is informed via public service announcements anymore like it used to on radio or tv. We really rely on an app now for this? Kind of a bad contingency plan - I seem to remember beibg in Paris in 2017 when the customs and security servers and computers went down in the airport. That was a great mess. Hmmm no one seems to think that was something to learn from. oh well, I guess I can go study what I think has been planned and then go wander around ahead of time so I become familiar with the road to the last bottle of water and toilet paper in my local grocery. Or look up and write down all the ways I can get in touch with my cell carrier to tell them my service is not working. Does anyone have a white pages phone book? I have to report it online now because they no longer have people answering phones for customer service.

Wakes us in the middle of the night with minor alerts

So the freeze warning was extended, or maybe some other fairly normal weather event gets reported, and the weather alert notification dings and wakes us at all times of the night. I like to keep the sound on for notification in case there is some real extreme weather developing, but I really don’t care to be advised that a freeze advisory has been extended at 2:15 am.

I should be allowed to define what types of weather I consider critical or minor, and the notification with sound should only be used for what I define as critical events. A farmer may have different needs than a taxi driver or a builder or a writer of suspense novels, just to name a few.

95% of all the alerts are for things I either know about (I looked at the forecast, I can hear the thunder or the heavy rain, etc), or have a reasonable expectation will not affect me much (flash flooding typically doesn’t affect the places I go, beyond the fact that visibly heavy rain creates conditions for hydroplaning).

Developer Response ,

Thank you for your feedback. Our development team is currently working on new features that will allow users to customize the alerts they receive for each location they enter. We value your input and will continue to use it to inform the design and development of the FEMA App.

Wish I could Sue for harassment

I downloaded this app for one reason only , I live in a National forest town and there’s big storms when they happen like wildfires. However, how am I supposed to take it seriously when I’ve set my notifications to only one reminder every 24 hours and yet I get (I’ve counted before complaining) about 6 of the same notification at one time every hour. You do the math. 6x24 for one location for one person for one day. You notify me 144 times a day!!!! I couldn’t even begin to save a life with my phone going off like this! And then you’re notifying me for wind and little bits of rain and places that are at least 20 miles away from me when I very specifically only want my location! Once a day for the same storm. You make me want to turn my phone off but I can’t because i use my phone for work and as I’ve said I can’t delete your app because I live in a dangerous location to not have warnings of floods, avalanches, fires, etc. stop annoying me!! I said one notification every 24 hours and honestly I only need one notification. Period. I really hate this app but I have to have it or I would delete.

Developer Response ,

Hello jjohns32, thank you for writing in. We understand your frustration. The 24-hour silent notifications feature is meant to silence notifications for 24 hours. During this time period, you will still receive the alerts, but there will not be an associated sound or vibration. During situations with frequent alerts, you may receive alerts that appear like they are duplicates. These alerts, which are issued by your local alerting authority, can have the same headlines but very often contain new information such as updates to the Areas Affected and/or Details sections of the alert. We encourage you to read each alert that you receive in the FEMA app because weather and emergency conditions can evolve quickly. These alerts may contain important information for your location and could be lifesaving for you and your family. In the meantime, the FEMA app team is working hard to develop new features that make it clearer when alert information changes and to give you more options to customize what alerts you get. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to us by emailing fema-app@fema.dhs.gov.