Schools can trigger an Emergency Roll in Orah automatically from an external system — no staff member needs to open the app during an emergency. This is especially valuable when every second counts: the roll can start the moment a physical alarm is triggered, without waiting for someone to open Orah.

Orah's Open API trigger allows external systems to send a single authenticated API call that immediately starts an Emergency Roll. Systems that can be configured to do this include:

The external system makes one authenticated API call to Orah's Open API endpoint. Orah receives the call and immediately triggers the Emergency Roll — no human action required in the app. From that point, the roll behaves identically to one started manually by a staff member:

Step 1 — Enable Open API
Navigate to Admin Console > Open API and enable the Open API for your school. This is where you'll also find the credentials your IT team needs to authenticate the external system's API call.

Step 2 — Configure an Emergency Roll Type
Ensure at least one Emergency-type Roll Type is configured in Orah. Designate a staff member with start permission on that Roll Type — this staff member acts as the roll's initiator in Orah's system.

Step 3 — Configure the External System
Work with your IT team or integration partner to configure the external system (fire panel, Singlewire, AlertMedia, or other) to make an authenticated API call to Orah when triggered. Your IT team will need the Open API credentials from Step 1 to set this up.

This feature is fully additive — it does not change any existing Emergency Roll functionality. Schools that do not configure an external trigger continue to start rolls manually exactly as before. No existing workflows are affected.

Have more questions? Click the chat icon at the bottom of this page to reach the Orah support team.

Further Reading:

Tags:
Emergency Roll, Open API, External System, Fire Panel, Singlewire, AlertMedia, API Trigger, Integration, Automation, Emergency Drill