What happens when emergencies involve your pets or animals? In this lively and unfiltered episode of The Alerting Authority, hosts Eddie Bertola and Jeannette Sutton bring in their pets—complete with roaming goats, curious cats, and plenty of unexpected moments—to explore the critical role animals play in disasters.

Joined by Dr. Sarah DeYoung, an expert in disaster research and companion animals, the conversation dives into how pets, livestock, and even exotic animals impact evacuation decisions, emergency messaging, and public safety outcomes. From goats knocking over cameras to cats hiding during evacuations, this episode blends humor with powerful insights on preparedness, warning systems, and real-world challenges.

You’ll learn:

• How animals influence human decision-making during emergencies
• Why early warnings are essential for households with pets and livestock
• The hidden risks of evacuating (or not evacuating) with animals
• Practical preparedness tips for pet owners and emergency managers
• The emotional and psychological impact of losing animals in disasters
• How organizations and policies are evolving to support animal safety

Plus, hear firsthand stories from the field—including hurricane evacuations, wildfire impacts, and the chaos of managing animals in real-time.

🎙️ Sponsored by HQE Systems – providing integrated alerting and notification solutions to help emergency managers simplify complex communication during crises.

Whether you're an emergency manager, pet owner, or just love animals, this episode offers valuable insights into making communities safer—for both people and the animals they care about.

In this episode of The Alerting Authority, hosts Jeannette Sutton and Eddie Bertola sit down with veteran alerting leader Carri Gordon to break down the evolution, effectiveness, and future of missing persons alerts.

With nearly 35 years of experience in emergency communications and public safety, Carri shares her journey from early dispatch operations—long before modern alerting systems—to leading statewide alert programs and now serving as a national subject matter expert on the Ashanti Alert initiative.

This episode dives deep into:

• How AMBER Alerts evolved from manual processes to real-time notifications
• The critical role of Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) in saving lives
• Why actionable information matters more than awareness alone
• The truth about alert criteria, delays, and decision-making
• How the Ashanti Alert Act is transforming missing adult alerting nationwide
• Lessons learned from real cases—both successful recoveries and tragic outcomes
• Why the public should never disable emergency alerts on their phones

You’ll also hear firsthand stories of alerts leading to recoveries within minutes—and the hard lessons that reshaped how alerting authorities operate today.

Whether you’re in emergency management, law enforcement, public safety communications, or simply want to understand how these systems protect communities, this episode provides expert insight into the science, strategy, and human impact behind every alert.

🎙️ Sponsored by Everbridge

This episode is proudly sponsored by Everbridge, a global leader in critical event management (CEM). Trusted by over 6,500 organizations worldwide, Everbridge helps governments and enterprises anticipate, respond to, and recover from critical events using powerful, AI-driven alerting and resilience solutions.

In Part II of our deep dive into the groundbreaking RAND national alerting study, we go beyond the headline stat that 91% of Americans received the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) and uncover the real story: who didn’t—and why it matters.

Host Jeannette Sutton is joined again by RAND researchers Rachel Steratore and Andy Parker to explore critical gaps in emergency alert systems, including:

• Why rural communities are less likely to receive alerts
• How age, device type, and mobile carriers impact delivery
• The surprising truth about opt-out behavior (especially among younger and lower-income users)
• The role of awareness, trust, and alert fatigue in public response
• How disability, language, and accessibility factor into alert effectiveness
• Why “sending the alert” doesn’t guarantee people actually receive—or act on—it

This episode also tackles one of the biggest unanswered questions in emergency communication: Do alerts actually lead to action?

You’ll hear insights on:

• The difference between receiving, understanding, and acting on alerts
• How risk perception (fear vs. familiarity) shapes behavior
• Why education and public awareness are major missing pieces
• The future of alerting across devices (phones, watches, smart tech, and more)
• What the next generation of research must focus on

If you’re an emergency manager, public safety professional, researcher, or just someone curious about how alerts work during real crises—this episode is essential listening.

👉 Watch Part I first for the full context of the RAND study
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