Office of Emergency Management

Staying informed is an important aspect of staying prepared. Prince William County Emergency Management encourages everyone to have multiple ways to receive emergency information. During a major emergency or disaster, Prince William County government posts information in the following places:

• County Emergency Information Portal
• County Social Media Pages on Facebook and Twitter
• PWC Alerts is an emergency notification system used by Prince William County government to send emergency alerts, non-emergency updates, as well as automated weather notifications to you through voice calls, texts, and/or emails before, during, and after a major crisis. This highly customizable system allows you to receive only those alerts that you are interested in receiving (examples include: severe weather watches & warnings, traffic alerts, etc.).  For more information and to register, go to alerts.

You may also receive alerts from authorities in the following ways:

• Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) are emergency alerts sent by authorities to wireless devices (predominantly cell phones).
• The Emergency Alert System (EAS) overrides television and radio broadcast stations with emergency messages.
• NOAA Weather Radios can be programmed to broadcast alerts about all types of hazards for your specific area
• Local television and radio stations often provide information before, during, and after disasters. WTOP (FM 103.5 and AM 1500), and WMAL (FM 105.9 and AM 630) are the designated Emergency Broadcast Stations for this area. Authorities will use these and other media sources to broadcast emergency alerts and test alerts through the EAS (Emergency Alerting System).
• Get the latest information on Prince William County emergencies, closures and delays at https://www.pwcva.gov/department/emergency.