SOS Technologies to deploy Emergency Alert System for NYC Public Schools “Direct-to-First Responder” EAS reduces first responder notification times from minutes to under 10 seconds
By SSN Staff
Updated 8:40 AM CDT, Tue October 28, 2025
DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla.—SOS Technologies, a provider of life safety and emergency communication solutions, has announced that New York City has partnered with SOS to deploy its new Emergency Alert System (EAS) to help protect NYC public schools experiencing an active safety threat.
This innovative system enables direct, instant communication between schools and first responders, slashing notification times from minutes to under 10 seconds.
The new Emergency Alert System, created in partnership with the New York City Office of Technology and Innovation (OTI), debuted at the Spring Creek campus in Brooklyn - the first school building in the United States to have direct 911 first responder integration - and is scheduled to be rolled out to a total of 25 school buildings, representing 51 public schools across the five boroughs during the 2025-2026 school year.
Home to the world’s largest public school system, NYC schools serve approximately 1.8 million students and staff. This pioneering initiative establishes a direct link with first responders - enabling immediate notification to NYPD, FDNY, and EMS - eliminating costly delays and vastly improving emergency response times when every second counts.
“New York City is setting a new national standard for school safety,” said Travis Leonardi, chairman and CEO of SOS Technologies. “For the first time ever, public schools are directly tied into a city’s 911 first responder life-safety communications infrastructure. This groundbreaking integration eliminates costly delays, giving police, fire, and EMS the ability to begin responding almost instantly when seconds matter most. We are honored to be a part of the technology which helps safeguard the lives NYC students and educators.”
The NYC EAS platform seamlessly communicates with agencies like NYC Public Schools, NYPD, PSAC 911, and FDNY, helping to accelerate emergency notification and ensuring that calls for help are instantly prioritized and precisely geo-located.
With extensive system redundancy, continuous real-time monitoring, and GovRamp-Authorized cybersecurity, the Emergency Alert System delivers unmatched reliability and protection for New York City’s life-safety communications and public-school infrastructure.
“From day one, our mission has been to help improve life safety systems through innovative technologies,” said Paul Averill, president and COO of SOS Technologies. “By directly linking New York City Public Schools to the city’s first responder communication infrastructure, we’re closing a critical gap in emergency notification and response times. With the announcement of this important NYC initiative, we are optimistic that other cities across the country will adopt these technologies to help revolutionize communication between public and private institutions and first responders.”
New York City’s selection of SOS Technologies underscores the city’s commitment to pioneering safety initiatives and providing the most advanced protection possible for its students and educators.
“Public safety is the prerequisite to prosperity and the key to delivering for working-class families, because our students deserve to feel safe in school, our parents must know their children are in a secure environment, and our teachers should have the confidence to focus on shaping young minds,” said NYC Mayor Eric Adams. “This new Emergency Alert System will protect our students, teachers, and staff, making sure New York City Public Schools have the most secure line of defense possible to keep our schools safe.”
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