Community Safety · A Peny guide
Understanding your community emergency alerts.
Peny provides real-time community emergency alerts sourced directly from the National Weather Service (NWS) active alerts feed api.weather.gov/alerts/active. While managed by the NWS, local, state, and federal agencies use this specific network to issue critical warnings for severe weather, hazardous materials, and public safety emergencies to keep your community informed and safe.
How the alert network works
While these alerts are distributed through the National Weather Service (NWS) infrastructure, they are not limited to weather. Local authorities — like emergency managers and law enforcement — use this network to broadcast Non-Weather Emergency Messages (NWEMs).
Alert categories overview
Below is a breakdown of the official alert categories you may receive through Peny, including descriptions and examples of each.
Natural hazards
Geological / geophysical
Alerts for earth-based events monitored by partner agencies (like the USGS) and broadcast over the network.
Meteorological
Direct alerts issued by meteorologists for imminent severe, short-term atmospheric conditions.
Climatological
Alerts for dangerous conditions driven by longer-term atmospheric patterns or seasonal extremes.
Biological
Health-related warnings issued by local authorities and relayed as general emergency messages.
Human-caused hazards
Public safety incidents
Immediate threats to life or safety issued by local law enforcement and relayed through the alert system.
Civil disturbances
Warnings regarding localized unrest posing a danger to physical safety, relayed on behalf of local officials.
Transportation disruption
Severe travel hazards relayed as local emergencies, or warnings for weather crippling travel.
Technological hazards
Critical infrastructure or communications failures reported by emergency management and broadcasted.
Hazardous materials & terrorism
Alerts for dangerous substance releases or security threats, relayed as specific non-weather warnings.
Other emergencies
Rescue operations
Warnings related to extreme conditions requiring life-saving actions or backcountry rescues.
Fire suppression & rescue
Alerts issued by local fire officials requiring immediate action due to an active, spreading fire.
Other
Miscellaneous local emergency messages broadcasted over the wire that don't fit standard weather categories.
Stay informed. Stay neighborly.
Alerts surface in your Peny feed the moment they're broadcast in your area — no extra app, no extra account. Just your community, looking out for itself.
