Royal residents will soon be informed about emergencies affecting their water service through an alert system operated by the community’s water provider.

City council members learned on March 10 that Iowa Lakes Regional Water has an automated calling system that alerts customers in situations such as service interruptions or boil advisories. Mayor Josh Toft said the call alerts would eliminate the need for the city to physically place notices of water-related service issues on the doors of all 209 residences.

According to discussion, the city’s role would be to compile a list of telepho...