Nova Scotia·NewThe province of Nova Scotia has launched a new app to make sure people with spotty cellphone coverage — or none at all — can get vital emergency alerts.Anyone with phones using Wi-Fi or older networks can now get alertsHaley Ryan · CBC News · Posted: Aug 29, 2025 8:26 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoThe province has launched the NS Alert app as a way for residents to receive emergency alerts through older cell networks or Wi-Fi. (Haley Ryan)The province of Nova Scotia has launched a new app to make sure people with spotty cellphone coverage — or none at all — can get vital emergency alerts.Residents in rural areas of the province have reported issues with receiving alerts through the national Alert Ready system in recent years during various emergencies, including hurricanes and floods.That national system only allows emergency alerts to be sent to newer 5G or LTE networks, which are not available in some parts of the province.On Thursday, the Department of Emergency Management announced the free NS Alert app is now available for download in the Apple and Google Play stores.It allows mobile phones that might only get older 3G networks, or Wi-Fi, to receive emergency alerts sent through Alert Ready. The app can also translate alerts to 32 other languages.”It’ll certainly cover a gap in the system that’s desperately needed,” said Mayor Rod Gilroy of the Municipality of Cumberland.An SUV rests at the bottom of a road washed out by torrential rains from post-tropical storm Fiona in Cape Breton’s Richmond County in 2022. (Communications Nova Scotia/The Canadian Press)Gilroy said his municipality still has large areas where cell service is “spotty, to say the least,” and the app is a welcome move as residents wait for better cell coverage.The province is building new cell towers across the province to improve service, with four planned for the Cumberland municipality that are expected to be done in 2026.”We’re experiencing more and more emergency situations in Nova Scotia. The right alert at the right time can make all the difference,” Minister of Emergency Management Kim Masland said in a release.Warden Paul Long of the Municipality of the District of Guysborough said he knows many residents don’t have landlines anymore and rely on Wi-Fi connections that allow Internet-based calling or messaging.Guysborough is expected to see six new cell towers by 2026 to fill dead zones.”If that app is available and there’s more coverage in the area, then you know, it’s only a good thing. It’s going to … alleviate a lot of safety concerns,” Long said.”It’s imperative that that happens — that we have as much awareness and alerts go on when emergencies happen, as they seem to be happening more and more all the time.”Long said making sure everyone is covered in emergencies is also important for the province’s economy. New businesses looking to set up in rural areas need to make sure that coverage is in place, Long said, and tourists passing through N.S. must be kept informed.Paul Long is warden of the Municipality of the District of Guysborough. (Hilary Hendsbee)”All those things play a role in getting people to want to live and stay and work in the area,” Long said.The province said the new app also addresses a recommendation from the Mass Casualty Commission’s final report, about improving public education around public warnings.Crown corporation Build Nova Scotia is handling the Cellular for Nova Scotia program. Its website reported as of Thursday that 95 per cent of the province has standard-definition service. That allows for audio calls, Internet browsing, and social media.The province spent $1 million to develop and operate the NS Alert app with Alberta-based vendor, Public Emergency Alerting Services Inc., said a news release.ABOUT THE AUTHORHaley Ryan is the municipal affairs reporter for CBC covering mainland Nova Scotia. Got a story idea? Send an email to haley.ryan@cbc.ca, or reach out on Twitter @hkryan17.
New app allows Nova Scotians without cell service to get emergency alerts
