Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Implements ATI's Siren Alert System to Quickly and Effectively Warn Citizens During Emergencies

Acoustic Technology, Inc. (ATI Systems), the world leader in Mass Notification Systems, and Tecal Engenharia Ltda (Tecal Technology Solutions), a Brazilian engineering company, have successfully deployed a Siren Alert System in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Brazilian Government wanted an effective and reliable way to warn citizens of an impending or current emergency, and found ATI’s solution best met their needs.

Rio de Janeiro averages 100+ inches of rain between December and February, annually, oftentimes leading to disasters such as mudslides and flash floods. As a result of devastating floods and deadly mudslides, the need to accurately broadcast an emergency warning message to at-risk areas was crucial. The Civil Defense of the State of Rio de Janeiro initiated this project to provide a system that could quickly warn the affected populace.

ATI and Tecal were able to design a warning solution that met the needs of the area. The Siren Alert System includes a Master Control Station that has the ability to control all 180 High-Powered Speaker Stations, which are placed strategically throughout 12 different cities surrounding Rio de Janeiro. Each of the 12 cities have their own Control Station to activate the sirens in their own city.

ATI provided the project equipment, hardware and software, and customization of the software to client requirements. Tecal managed the overall project and contract execution, project communications, installation, field work and implementation.

Key features of the Siren Alert System include:

• Three types of communication to ensure the system will be 100% operational, regardless of the magnitude of the disaster:
  • VHF digital radio communication with repeaters (Motorola MotoTRBO)
  • Cellular modems
  • Direct Ethernet connections
• Communication infrastructure utilizes all three communication channels simultaneously. Each siren will utilize the first activation message it receives from one of these channels. This redundancy ensures continuous communication.
• ATI’s MassAlert software allows administrators to control the system from any web browser via secure login, including activation, access to system features, and status.