• Emergencies Dial: 911; Non-Emergency Dispatch: (303) 288-1535 (24-hour assistance)
  • 500 S. 4th Ave., 3rd Floor Brighton, CO 80601
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Emergency Notifications
Brighton-Fire Logo

Brighton Fire
Rescue District

Code Red
Sign up for Emergency Notifications

Attempts will be made to warn you and inform you about some emergencies. There are several ways to receive important emergency information.

  • You should not rely on one notification method in all situations. 
  • You should learn the available systems and plan to use and access several for emergency and disaster alerts.
  • Please remember that it is your responsibility to know and understand the hazards in your immediate area and know how to respond in order to stay safe. It takes everyone’s participation in building a resilient Brighton community.

NOAA Weather Radio

  • A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Weather Radio is a dedicated radio that receives real-time weather information direct from the National Weather Service. 
  • During severe weather, more frequent updates, and live broadcasts are used to notify listeners of potential hail, flooding, tornadoes, blizzard conditions, and other weather warnings. 
  • NOAA Weather Radios can be purchased at many electronic stores, and can be battery operated, giving you an option to receive information when your power is out.

City of Brighton outdoor warning sirens were retired in August 2024.

Survival Kit

It is very important that you and your family have a kit containing emergency supplies allowing you to survive on your own for about three days. Every family’s kit will look a little bit different depending on the number of family members, if you have children, infants, elderly or pets living at your home or apartment.

Each kit must reflect the unique needs of each family in order to be a successful disaster tool. There are many suggested lists available to assist with starting your kit.

Emergency Supplies
Water, food, and clean air are important things to have if an emergency happens. Each family or individual’s kit should be customized to meet specific needs, such as medications and infant formula. It should also be customized to include important family documents.

Recommended Supplies

  • Water, one gallon of water per person, per day, for drinking and sanitation
  • Prescription and OTC medications
  • Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food
  • Battery-powered radio and a NOAA weather radio with tone alert, and extra batteries for both
  • Flashlight and extra batteries
  • First-aid kit
  • Whistle to signal for help
  • Infant formula and diapers, if you have an infant
  • Moist towelettes, garbage bags, and plastic ties for personal sanitation
  • Dust mask or cotton t-shirt, to help filter the air
  • Plastic sheeting and duct tape to shelter-in-place
  • Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
  • Can opener for food (if kit contains canned food)

General guidelines to follow before, during and after any emergency or disaster:

Before

  • Know the risks and hazards in your area and know the danger signs.
  • Purchase adequate insurance to cover possible losses due to the emergency / disaster.
  • Develop plans for what to do in any / all types of emergencies based upon the hazards within your area.
  • If you are traveling to another location, know the risks and hazards of that location and plan out how your will respond while you are there.
  • Assemble a disaster supplies kit for each person/animal in your home.
  • Know where your local shelters are located and how you will get there.
  • Know what your area’s evacuation plans are and how you will respond.
  • Volunteer to help others in their planning efforts.

During

  • Put your plans you developed into action.
  • Follow the direction, advice, and guidance of officials in charge of the event.
  • Stay calm; this is where your preparedness efforts really come in handy because you have already done your research.
  • Help others, if you can.

After

  • Recover the best you can. It is your responsibility to recover, rebuild, and become whole again.
  • If you have lost / damaged property, take photos, document everything.
  • Contact your insurance company immediately and let them know what happened.
  • Seek out local assistance, if needed, such as sheltering needs, food banks, etc.
  • If the emergency / disaster meets disaster thresholds, state and federal assistance may be available. Listen to your local government officials for directions / guidance.

During a natural disaster or major emergency, residents may have only seconds to evacuate. To help ensure critical information reaches residents when it matters most, the Brighton Police Department, Brighton Fire Rescue District, and Brighton Office of Emergency Management are working together to deploy Hi-Lo sirens, standardize evacuation terminology, and establish designated evacuation areas. These efforts add important layers to Brighton’s emergency notification system, providing critical redundancy when traditional communication methods may be delayed, disrupted or unavailable.

What are Hi-Lo sirens?

Recent catastrophic urban wildfires, have shown that during extreme emergencies, evacuation needs can quickly outpace traditional notification systems. 

The City of Brighton uses multiple tools to reach its approximately 50,000 residents, including CodeRED, social media and IPAWs which employs the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), NOAA Weather Radios and the Emergency Alert System (EAS). During fast-moving disasters, outages or disruptions to communications infrastructure, alerts may be delayed or unavailable. To provide an additional layer of notification, the Brighton Police Department is installing Hi-Lo sirens in their patrol vehicles. A Hi-Lo siren is a distinct two-tone alert used only when immediate evacuation is necessary and an evacuation order has been issued. Along with the Hi-Lo siren, patrol vehicles will also have a pre-recorded evacuation messages in English and Spanish. The system uses a distinctive alternating high-low tone followed by: 

“A mandatory evacuation order has been issued for this area. Please evacuate immediately.”

Law enforcement will activate the patrol vehicle siren while driving through impacted neighborhoods to notify residents directly.

Know Your Emergency Terms

The Brighton Police Department, Brighton Fire Rescue District and Brighton Office of Emergency Management are also adopting standardized emergency terminology. This effort aligns with a broader Front Range initiative to create clearer, more consistent disaster communications. 

Evacuation Order

An immediate threat to life. This is a mandatory, lawful order to leave immediately, and the area is closed to public access. The Hi-Lo siren will only be used when an Evacuation Order is issued.

Evacuation Warning

A potential threat to life and/or property. Those who need additional time to evacuate, as well as those with pets or livestock, should leave now.

Shelter in Place

Go indoors and shut and lock doors and windows. Prepare to shelter until further notice or until emergency personnel provide additional direction.

Creating evacuation zones

The Brighton Office of Emergency Management has divided the Brighton Fire Rescue District into geometric evacuation polygons. This helps emergency responders issue targeted warnings and evacuation orders during emergencies such as wildfires and floods. Rather than alerting the entire district, this will allow responders to notify only the areas affected by a threat. 

Stay Informed and Be Prepared

The Brighton Police Department and Brighton Fire Rescue District are joining agencies across the Front Range in adopting Hi-Lo sirens, standardized evacuation terminology, and designated geographic evacuation areas as part of a regional effort to strengthen emergency response and improve public safety. Residents are encouraged to sign up for emergency notifications through brightonco.gov/alerts or brightonfire.org to receive critical emergency information and updates. 

Resources to help your family plan for evacuations: