Just a reminder that FEMA and DHS are conducting a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System today at 2PM Eastern (which translates to 3PM Atlantic, 1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific, 10AM Alaskan and 9AM Hawaiian Times respectively). The 30-second-long test will be conducted on all television and radio stations across the 50 United States and US Territories.
The reason this test is a big deal is for a few reasons:
1 -- The EAS has never been tested on a national level before, and has never been required on a national level. It was not used on 9/11 because the news stations covered it literally minutes after the first plane struck, and the way the EAS is implemented would have disrupted news coverage and caused more confusion.
2 -- The EAS code they're sending out is a live code, as opposed to a test code. Any visual EAS alerts on television stations will read "Emergency Action Notification" or "National Emergency Activation" or something along those lines. They're trying to get the word out to as many people as possible to prevent panic and reiterate that this is only a test, regardless of what the text on the TV alert says.
3 -- The test might run a little longer than a normal weekly/monthly local EAS test, which may cause some confusion and unrest for those listening.
Here's some more information from the FCC about this test.
For folks not in the Untied States, the Emergency Alert System is a visual/audio alert that is broadcast over television and radio stations during an emergency...usually something like a tornado warning, flash flood warning, Amber Alert (child abduction emergency), or even something like a Boil Water Advisory or 911 Telephone Outage. It's tested weekly and monthly, but has never been activated for more area than an entire state.
The appearance/script of the EAS varies from location to location, but this is what a weekly test looks like:
And this is what a real emergency looks like, from the tsunami this past march:
Remember, even if the EAS screen on your TV says something different, the activation at 2PM Eastern is only a test.
11:38 AM PT: It worked here in Mobile AL but I'm seeing reports that it failed elsewhere. Some regions didn't receive the alert, and some stations didn't get it either. There are also lots of reports of panicked phone calls to police after seeing messages that a national emergency occurred and the White House was going to make a statement shortly.
This is why "JUST A TEST" was emphasized. Wish more people had gotten the word.
Anywho, this was the test here in Mobile. Video by me.