Case Study: Sonoma County, CA achieves 1,300% opt-in growth and timely wildfire evacuation alerts with Everbridge Nixle

Sonoma County, CA - Customer Case Study

Sonoma County faced the October 2017 Northern California wildfires—the worst in the state's history—when fast-moving blazes burned roughly 245,000 acres, forced about 100,000 people to evacuate, and destroyed nearly 8,900 homes and businesses. Public safety officials needed a way to send targeted, timely evacuation notices and updates to displaced residents who often lacked access to TVs or landlines.

The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office deployed Everbridge Nixle to deliver neighborhood-level alerts before, during, and after the fires, sending evacuation orders, route information, shelter and hospital availability, curfews, re-entry and cleanup instructions. The system dramatically expanded outreach, growing the opt-in database from 20,000 to about 275,000 residents (a ~1,300% increase) and ensuring timely communication to affected communities.

Sonoma County, CA