Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office urges residents to share gate codes in case of emergency

Those living in unincorporated parts of Sonoma County who have a gate on their property are being asked to register their access codes with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

The Sheriff’s Office took to Facebook this week asking that residents in unincorporated parts of Sonoma County, Windsor and Sonoma who have an gate to voluntarily file the code at sonomasheriff.org/gate-code.

In the Facebook post requesting the codes, the department wrote that the codes will be entered into a secure system. During an emergency, such as an evacuation or response to a 911 call, a dispatcher will give the code to the responding deputy. All information remains confidential.

“This allows the deputy to quickly enter your property and reach your home,” the Sheriff’s Office wrote in the April 18 post.

The Graton Fire Department also took to Facebook with the same request, writing, “Precious seconds can be lost trying to get through your gate. We use the same dispatch computer as the Sheriff Office and we will get your gate code as well when we are dispatched to your home.”

The gate code registration form, presented in both English and Spanish, collects residents’ name, address, phone numbers, email, gate code and any other instructions that the residents give about accessing the gate or the property.