"The system calls each number up to three times and can even leave a message on an answering machine," Hauser said.

The patented system is capable of reaching about 60,000 residences, based on a pre-programmed list of numbers provided by village residents to Wellington emergency managers.

The CodeRED system was installed in Delray Beach in October.

"We try to reach all the registered numbers," said Delray Beach public information officer Ivan Ladizinsky. "We record a specific message at the time of the emergency, and access is controlled by police and fire departments and the city manager only."

Delray Beach residents register their number on the city's emergency call list by going to the city's Web site at www.mydelraybeach.com.

Boca Raton, which has had the system since January 2003, used CodeRED during Hurricanes Frances, Jeanne and Wilma, according to Nicole Gasparri, assistant city manager.

"The system was used for specific emergencies during last year's hurricanes and also based on the magnitude of a given emergency, like when we have a boil water notice," Gasparri said.

Wellington officials said they intend to use CodeRED sparingly.

"We don't want to use the system too often, because it can come off like crying wolf, and we don't want people to ignore it," Hauser said.

When it was rolled out in Boca Raton, the CodeRED system had some programming flaws, which resulted in residents being called multiple times or with the wrong message. But they have been worked out through dry run tests, Gasparri said.

"We actually worked with the company to work those bugs out, and we do a test every year and also when the company rolls out an upgrade," Gasparri said.

More than 50,000 Boca Raton residents are enrolled in the system. Residents go the city's Web site, www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us, to provide their information online to be put on the call list.

Wellington is encouraging residents to add their telephone numbers to the village's CodeRED database; no one should assume his or her phone number is included, Hauser said.

Businesses should register, as well as individuals who have unlisted phone numbers, have changed their phone number or address within the last year, or who use a cellular phone as their home phone. Residents who recently moved, but kept the same listed or unlisted phone number, also need to change their address in the database.

People can register by calling 561-791-4003 and asking for a registration form, or visiting the Web site, www.ci.wellington.fl.us/eoc_codered.htm.

The computer calls residents with a message city officials can customize, based on the nature of the emergency.

Boynton Beach has used a competing service, called Dialogic based in Tennessee, since 2001.

The network is connected to Palm Beach County's system, adding extra back up, said Peter Wallace, the city's director of information technology services. The system also allows unlimited phone calls, he said.

"Even if the city ever suffers damage to City Hall, we can definitely get the word out," he said.

The city has used the system about seven times, including an alert over a missing child and a malaria scare, he said.

Staff Writer Marc Freeman contributed to this report.