The general manager of the company TryCycle Data Systems, John MacBeth, introduces the new FirstAlert system in the Talking Stick mobile app.
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The James Smith Cree Nation has launched a new community alert system for public safety in Indigenous communities, FirstAlerts.
In partnership with the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations of Saskatchewan (FSIN) and TryCycle Data Systems, the First Nation has unveiled this new feature of the Talking Stick mobile application on Wednesday.
Created last April in Saskatchewan, this discussion platform offers mental health support to First Nations people.
As for the new security alert system, its objective is to inform members of the First Nations in the event of an emergency situation in their respective communities, according to a press release published Wednesday by the Cree Nation James Smith.
In the event of an incident in Indigenous communities, the new feature FirstAlertswill send alerts to users, providing information on the type of emergency, the nature of the emergency ;time, location and recommended measures to guarantee the safety of residents.
This announcement comes two weeks after the end of the coroner's inquest into the attacks of September 4, 2022, in Saskatchewan, which left 11 dead and 17 injured in the community and in the neighboring village of Weldon.
According to James Smith Cree Nation Chief Wally Burns, the Indigenous community had been looking for a way to # x27;inform its population in the event of emergency situations.
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ELSE ON NEWS: Shooting leaves one dead and around twenty injured at the Super Bowl parade< p class="StyledBodyHtmlParagraph-sc-48221190-4 hnvfyV">During the September 2022 massacre, we saw how important emergency communication was in saving lives. Unfortunately, our community has been devastated, laments Wally Burns.
This new alert feature is a tipping point, as it allows Indigenous leaders to notify members of the community of dangers and criminal activities, he adds.
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Chief of the James Smith Cree Nation, Wally Burns. (File photo)
Chief Robert Head of the Peter Chapman community, part of the Cree Nation by James Smith, believes that this mobile application could have saved lives if it had been created before 2022.
Les Young generations are all connected by mobile phone and use all these applications and they are the ones who will have the most impact regarding the alert system, he indicates.
According to him, FirstAlertswill allow indigenous communities to better control dangerous situations.
We can respond in real time to immediate threats within the community, says Robert Head.
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The director TryCycle Data Systems General Manager John MacBeth (left) with Community Leader Robert Head Peter Chapman (right).
For the moment the alert system is deployed only within the James Smith Cree Nation, but the developers are aiming for its adoption by other First Nations to broadcasting alerts.
Using this mobile app, managers can send critical updates in seconds, and information reaches community members in real time, the press release notes.
An addiction worker at a James Smith Cree Nation clinic, Chelsey Stonestand, says she is optimistic about the help this system could provide to her community.
I'm full of hope. I think that any possibility of creating a feeling of security within our communities will be useful, she specifies. I hope this will be of some use, not just to the James Smith Cree Nation, but to all First Nations communities.
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Chelsey Stonestand is an addiction worker in a James Smith Cree Nation clinic.
For his part, the general manager of the company TryCycle Data Systems, John MacBeth, states that since Talking Stick has been downloaded 25,000 times, the' #x27;adding this feature to the existing mobile app was a logical decision.
In the As part of our relationship with the FSIN, we listened to First Nations leaders, who told us of their urgent need to have effective means of communicating with their members in the event of a crisis, he specifies.< /p>
With the introduction of FirstAlerts in the& ;#x27;app Talking Stick, we put control of messages directly in the hands of indigenous communities, he adds.
With information from Fatoumata Traore and Pratyush Dayal
Teilor Stone has been a reporter on the news desk since 2013. Before that she wrote about young adolescence and family dynamics for Styles and was the legal affairs correspondent for the Metro desk. Before joining Thesaxon , Teilor Stone worked as a staff writer at the Village Voice and a freelancer for Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, GQ and Mirabella. To get in touch, contact me through my teilor@nizhtimes.com 1-800-268-7116
