Thousands of people have signed up to receive emergency alerts since the county’s voluntary warning system went into effect in June.

About 4,000 people have signed up for the CodeRed emergency alert system, Warren County Emergency Manager John Elfer told Vicksburg Kiwanis Club Tuesday.

“I think we signed up 900 in one day,” Elfer said.

Since the program went online, residents have received alerts about severe weather and a county burn ban, Elfer said.

On the city or county web sites, residents may register a cell or land-line phone number to receive free calls or text messages about tornado warnings, evacuation orders and other emergencies.

Residents without Internet access may register for CodeRed by calling Elfer’s office at 601-636-1544.

The program was a tough sell to supervisors because of the price tag on the three-year deal, Elfer said. It’ll cost the county general fund $15,625 the first year and $18,750 the final two years.

Since warning sirens had long been silent, the CodeRed system was needed, Elfer said.

“We had to do something. I was firmly not going to quit with the board,” he said.

Debate in the past three years among supervisors has centered on cost versus participation. The CodeRed program came to the fore after information that the 16 county-owned sirens erected in the 1980s to warn of nuclear accidents haven’t worked in about two years. No plan exists to remove or replace them. Fixing or replacing the sirens would cost about $20,000 each, officials have said.