Nationwide test of emergency alerts to be held Wednesday

FEMA will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alerts Wednesday afternoon in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission.

Both the EAS and WEA will be tested at 1:20 p.m. Wednesday. The WEA portion of the test will go to all consumer cell phones, while the EAS portion of the test will be sent to radios and TVs.

The purpose of Wednesday’s test is to ensure the systems continue to be effective means of warning the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national level.

“We’re going to work with local media to make sure everyone is aware of it,” Butler County Emergency Management Agency Director Robbie Myers said. “This is not something that happens very often, so it’ll be a surprise to (some) people and we don’t want anyone to panic. This is just a regularly scheduled test.”

The WEA portion of the test will be initiated using FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), a centralized internet-based system administered by FEMA that enables authorities to send emergency messages to the public through multiple communications networks. The WEA test will be administered by a code sent to cell phones.

Cell phones should receive the message only once.

Beginning at approximately 1:20 p.m. Wednesday, cell towers will broadcast the test for approximately 30 minutes. During this time, WEA-compatible cell phones should be capable of receiving the test message, which will read: “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.”

“This is a very valuable tool for the government to have, but it’s not something you want to overuse,” Myers said. “When they plan that event, they want to make sure they give enough awareness so people aren’t caught off guard when it happens.

“Our local emergency management, working with the state emergency manager and federal (government), just want to help share that message. So when people’s phones go off on Wednesday afternoon, they’ll say, ‘Oh yeah, that’s just just a test.’”

WEA alerts are created and sent by authorized federal, state, local, tribal and territorial government agencies through IPAWS to participating wireless providers, which deliver the alerts to compatible handsets in geo-targeted areas. To help ensure that these alerts are accessible to the entire public, including people with disabilities, the alerts are accompanied by a unique tone and vibration.

The EAS portion of the test is scheduled to last approximately one minute and will be conducted with the participation of radio and television broadcasters, cable systems, satellite radio and television providers and wireline video providers.

This test message will be similar to the regular monthly EAS test messages with which the public is familiar. It will state: “This is a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System, issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, covering the United States from 14:20 to 14:50 hours ET. This is only a test. No action is required by the public.”

Myers said early October is a good time to have the test because it is not during busier times of the year weather-wise, such as spring tornado season or winter storm season.

“We can still have some bad weather in any part of our nation later this week, but for the most part, it’s a more calm part of the year,” Myers said.

Looking beyond Wednesday, Myers said he encourages people to have multiple ways to receive messages.

“We have our outdoor warning sirens, the cell phones apps — if you have a smartphone, there are all sorts of apps out there that you can get weather alerts on that are free,” Myers said. “And weather radios are a very valuable tool to help save lives because they work even when the power’s off because they’ve got battery backup....Just having multiple avenues to receive emergency messaging is the best way to prepare your family for times of disaster.”