Nixle, a provider of mass notification services for public safety that Pasadena has used for more than a year, received the Best Mass Notification System award in the Government Security News 2011 Homeland Security Awards recently for its Nixle Connect service.

The free public notification service allows government organizations to securely communicate with the public via text/SMS, e-mail, and Internet posts.

The annual GSN Homeland Security Awards program recognizes the ongoing public-private partnership between all branches of federal, state and local government in the United States and the private sector vendors of IT security and physical security products.

“We first began using Nixle over a year ago, and it remains a valuable addition to our other public information tools and emergency notification channels.“- Wayne Holt Publications Manager City of Pasadena

“It doesn’t surprise us that Nixle has received this award. We’ve found it to be one of the best options to distribute ‘must see’ information such as emergency messages and weather-related alerts. Events and activities that we can’t quickly share using traditional methods also benefit from this service. We’re excited to also begin integrating Nixle InterConnect to assist in internal communications with emergency operations center personnel and other city employees,” he said.

The City of Pasadena encourages residents to sign up for Nixle notifications to receive important and timely information in emergencies using their choice of text/SMS, e-mail, and Internet posts.

Citizens can register to receive messages from the City and other local agencies by sending a text message with their zip code to 888777. Online registration is also available at www.nixle.com.

“We are proud to be providing Pasadena with both Nixle Connect and InterConnect for their communications with the public and internal employees. It is always encouraging to hear feedback from an early adopter of our services and know that it has received positive responses from citizens and the media. We look forward to hearing future successes from the City of Pasadena and other agencies using Nixle.” – Eric Liu CEO Nixle