If Everything Is Urgent… Nothing Is

Your phone buzzes. Again.

You glance down, sigh, and mindlessly swipe it away. But you end up missing the one alert you actually needed. That, my friends, is alert fatigue, and it’s becoming one of the most dangerous side effects of modern public safety.

Today I want to talk to you about alert fatigue, what it is, why it happens, and how well-intentioned public safety alerts can backfire. More importantly, sending fewer, better-worded alerts may actually save more lives.

This isn’t about blaming dispatchers, emergency managers, or agencies for being overanxious. It’s about recognizing that just because we can alert everyone, doesn’t always mean we should.

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What Is Alert Fatigue?

Let’s start simple.

Alert fatigue occurs when people receive so many warnings, notifications, and alerts that their brains begin treating them as background noise. It’s the same reason your car’s “check engine” light stops scaring you after six months. Eventually, it just becomes part of the dashboard.

In public safety, that’s a serious problem.

Because the one alert someone ignores could be the one that actually matters. The one that saves a life.

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Why Public Safety Must Remain the Trusted Sender

Here’s the hard truth.

Public safety is not just another sender. It is the trusted sender, and it needs to remain that way.

When alerts come from 9-1-1 authorities, emergency management, or government systems, the public assumes a few things:

• Someone verified the threat
• Someone confirmed it’s real
• Someone decided it was serious enough to interrupt their lives

That trust isn’t automatic. It is earned over time, and it can be lost very quickly if misused.

The problem we’ve created for ourselves is that alerts no longer come only from public safety.

They now come from:

• Schools
• Colleges
• HOAs
• Corporations
• Stadiums
• Smart apps with marketing departments

When everyone starts sending alerts, public safety alerts stop feeling special. And when alerts stop feeling special, people stop reacting.

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The Distribution Dilemma: Who Really Needs This Alert?

This is where things get messy.

The goal is simple. Alert the people who need to know, without annoying everyone else.

The execution is not.

Some of the real-world challenges include:

• Geography is imperfect. Cell tower coverage does not match jurisdictional boundaries
• Overly broad alert polygons catch people miles away from the incident
• Fear of missing a few people pushes agencies to go wider than necessary
• Technology defaults often favor “everyone” instead of “relevant”

The result?

• A shelter-in-place alert sent county-wide for a three-block incident
• A late-night alert waking people who are in no danger
• Citizens asking, “Why did I get this?”

Enough of those moments, and people start opting out entirely.

That’s how alert fatigue turns into alert avoidance.

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What Should Be in an Alert? (According to the Science)

During recent congressional testimony, Dr. Jeannette Sutton reinforced something public safety professionals have known intuitively for years, yet it still gets excluded from most alerts.

At a minimum, every alert should answer these five questions:

• What is the source of the event?
• What hazard is occurring?
• Where is the location?
• What is the timeframe?
• What should I do right now?

What alerts should not be:

• Vague
• Overly technical
• Alarmist
• Packed with jargon
• Sent “just in case”

If your alert leaves people confused, or forces them to Google for clarity, you’ve already lost precious seconds. Possibly the entire message.

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A Real-World Comparison Everyone Understands

Think about the fire alarm at work.

If your office fire alarm went off every Tuesday, for burnt toast, microwave popcorn, or someone vaping, what happens when there’s a real fire?

People don’t run.

They grab their coffee.

They casually walk outside.

You’ve trained them to do exactly the wrong thing.

Public safety alerts work the same way.

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Should There Be Penalties for Misuse?

Now we’re stepping into uncomfortable territory.

Should agencies that repeatedly misuse alerting systems face consequences?

Possibly.

This is not about punishment for honest mistakes. It’s about correcting patterns of misuse that erode public trust. Options could include:

• Mandatory retraining
• Temporary restrictions on alert privileges
• Tiered approval requirements
• Oversight reviews identifying misuse patterns
• Financial penalties, but only as a last resort

Once public trust is lost, no amount of technology will easily restore it.

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A Message for the Next Generation of Public Safety Professionals

If you’re early in your career, here’s the takeaway.

Think of alerting as a fine scalpel, not a chainsaw.

Your job is not to alert everyone every time. Your job is to alert the right people, at the right time, with the right message.

That mindset will make you a better dispatcher, emergency manager, and leader.

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And for the Veterans in the Room

Yes. You’re absolutely right.

This is common sense.

The problem is that in a world of one-click alerts and automated systems, common sense needs an occasional reminder.

This is about generating less noise and far more signal.

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The Bottom Line

• Alert fatigue is real and growing
• Overuse weakens public trust and response
• Public safety must remain the trusted sender
• Precision beats volume, every time
• Clear, actionable messaging saves lives
• Accountability protects the system

That wraps up today’s discussion. Thanks so much for reading. I hope this sparked a bit of awareness you can apply to your agency’s alerting policies.

For more updates and insights, follow me on social media at Fletch911. My regular podcasts are available at 911tips.com, where you’ll find a complete archive of episodes. My professional website is Fletch911.com.