Gov. Nathan Deal and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency/Homeland Security have introduced an upgraded version of the state’s emergency mobile app, Ready Georgia, which was designed to help Georgians stay safe and informed during emergencies. Upgrading the app was one of the recommendations of the governor’s Severe Winter Weather Warning and Preparedness Taskforce.

“When severe weather hit our state this year, I called on our emergency management agency to upgrade the state’s emergency app with shelter information, alternative transportation routes and other emergency-related information,” Deal said. “The Ready Georgia app already served as a good resource for Georgians, but now that its capabilities have been expanded it will keep us better informed when emergency situations arise. I appreciate the cooperative efforts of all involved in this process, and I encourage everyone to download this app in advance of future weather-related emergencies.”

Launched in time for the June 1 start of hurricane season, the upgraded Ready Georgia app features geo-targeted severe weather and emergency alerts that will notify users’ phones before disasters strike. The app also includes traffic information, including a live traffic map with incident reports straight from the Georgia Department of Transportation. Finally, an enhanced shelters map displays the location of open Red Cross shelters and approved “good Samaritan” shelters, and provides directions from the users’ current location.

“This was a collaborative process and we’d like to thank all the organizations that partnered with us to provide information and feedback during development,” said GEMA/Homeland Security Director Charley English. “This app is an important tool in our ability to communicate with Georgians and help them stay informed, and we are really pleased with the new features that we have added as part of this upgrade.”

In addition to the new features, users will still be able to keep checklists of emergency supplies, create customized disaster plans for their families, check flood risk levels and historical tornado data near their location, and find contact information for their local emergency management agencies.

GEMA worked in partnership with the National Weather Service, Georgia Department of Transportation, Georgia Tech and The Weather Channel during the app’s development. To download the Ready Georgia mobile app, visit www.ready.ga.gov/mobileapp.

For more information on how to prepare for severe weather, visitwww.ready.ga.gov.

To learn about risks in specific areas of the state, contact the local emergency management agency.