Living in the nation’s capital can be exciting, but it can also be a bit nerve-wracking. After all, the traffic is horrible, the weather is unpredictable, and the presence of all of those key people and offices means the constant possibility of terror activity or other emergencies. If you live in the Washington, DC metro area, you probably do everything you can to stay in the know about what’s going on. And now there’s Capitalert, a great service that keeps you as connected as possible to breaking news in the area.

17 local governments in the capital region have joined forces to bring Capitalert to fruition. The system works when you sign up for free alerts to your mobile device or email. You can choose to receive weather alerts, traffic alerts, terror alerts, Amber Alerts and even school closing information, right to your cell phone, PDA or email address. Your wireless provider might charge you for the text messages, so make sure you check on that if you’re not sure what your wireless plan covers. But for the Capitalert system, all you do is create a free account and specify what kind of info you want to receive. That’s it!

Click here to visit the website, view a video about Capitalert, and sign up for the Capitalert service. If I lived in DC, I’d be signing up for it right now… I hope someone starts a service like this in my metro area soon. Be safe, be informed, and be ready with free emergency alerts!