Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test Planned for September 28

FEMA and FCC Issue Reminder and Key Points about Test
 

WASHINGTON – As a reminder, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a mandatory nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on Wednesday, September 28, at 2:20 p.m. EDT. In light of the upcoming test, the agencies share the following key informational points:

  • The purpose of the nationwide test is to ensure that EAS remains an effective means of warning the public about emergencies. Periodic testing of public alert and warning systems helps to assess the operational readiness of alerting infrastructure and identify any needed technological and administrative improvements.
  • The nationwide test will be administered by FEMA, in cooperation with the FCC and National Weather Service, and with the participation of radio, broadcast TV, cable, satellite, and other service providers (known as “EAS Participants”). EAS Participants are required to file reports with the FCC after the test, which the agency will analyze to determine how the test performed.
  • FEMA’s test message will be similar to the regular monthly EAS test messages in that the public should receive both audio and on-screen text conveying that this is only a test.  Specific language will differ slightly as it will indicate that, “This is a national test of the Emergency Alert System. This is only a test.” (emphasis added.)
  • The test message will be transmitted in both English and Spanish, with EAS Participants deciding which version to use for their communities. The test is intended to last approximately one minute.
  • How EAS works: Emergency alerts are created by authorized government agencies and sent to local radio and video service providers by local connections or through a central system administered by FEMA. The radio and video service providers then disseminate the emergency alert messages to affected communities. The FCC prescribes technical and procedural rules for communications providers’ participation in this process.
  • Public safety officials need to be sure that in times of an emergency or disaster, they have reliable methods and systems that will deliver urgent alerts and warnings to the public when needed. Conducting regional and national testing supports the continued use, training, and improvement of the system.
  • Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) will not be part of the test. 
  • The back-up date for the test is October 5, 2016, in case the September 28 test is cancelled due to widespread severe weather or other significant events.
  • The test was first officially announced on July 18, 2016. FEMA and the FCC have been coordinating with EAS Participants and other stakeholders in preparation for the test.

September is National Preparedness Month. In addition to conducting the nationwide EAS test, FEMA and the FCC encourage individuals to take action to prepare now and throughout the year. While government plays a role, each of us – including individuals, organizations and businesses – has important things we can do to be ready for the unexpected. Take time this month to be better prepared by following these steps:

  • Make an emergency plan so families know how to reconnect and reunite when an emergency strikes.
  • Download the FEMA App for disaster resources and to receive weather alerts, safety tips, and reminders (in English and Spanish) so you can have peace of mind and be ready for the unexpected.
  • Practice your preparedness. In case you are not with your family during an emergency, practice how you will communicate with each other; digitize important documents and plan a safety drill or exercise at your place of work. 
  • Visit Ready.gov. There are easy-to-use tools and resources available for families, organizations and communities for many disasters, to include floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and wildfires at Ready.gov.

 

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FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

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Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test Planned for September 28

Mandatory Nationwide Test of the Emergency Alert System

FEMA, FCC, in Coordination with State Broadcasters and Emergency Managers, test the EAS

 

WASHINGTON – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a mandatory nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on Wednesday, September 28, at 2:20 p.m. EDT to verify the delivery and broadcast, and assess the readiness for distribution of the national level test message.

The EAS test is made available to radio, television, cable, and direct broadcast satellite systems and is scheduled to last approximately one minute. The message of the test will be similar to the regular monthly test message of EAS, normally heard and seen by the public:  “This is a national test of the Emergency Alert System. This is only a test.”

Significant coordination and regional testing has been conducted with the broadcast community and emergency managers in coordination and preparation for this EAS national test. The test is intended to ensure public safety officials have the methods and systems that will deliver urgent alerts and warnings to the public in times of an emergency or disaster. Periodic testing of public alert and warning systems is also a way to assess the operational readiness of the infrastructure required for the distribution of a national message and determine what technological improvements need to be addressed.

Receiving preparedness tips and timely information about weather conditions or other emergency events can make all the difference in knowing when to take action to be safe. FEMA and partners are working to ensure you can receive alerts and warnings quickly through several different technologies no matter where you are–at home, at school, at work, or in the community. The FEMA App, which can be downloaded on both Android and Apple devices, is one way to ensure you receive both preparedness tips and weather alerts of your choice. Download the FEMA App today.

More information on the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) is available at www.ready.gov/alerts.

 

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Background: In 2007, FEMA began modernizing the nation’s public alert and warning system by integrating new technologies into the existing alert systems.  The new system, known as the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) became operational in 2011. Today, IPAWS supports over 700 local, state, tribal, and federal users through a standardized message format. IPAWS enables public safety alerting authorities such as emergency managers, police and fire departments to send the same alert and warning message over multiple communication pathways at the same time to citizens in harm’s way, helping to save lives. For more information on FEMA’s IPAWS, go to: www.fema.gov/ipaws.  For more preparedness information, go to www.ready.gov.

 

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

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Mandatory Nationwide Test of the Emergency Alert System

FEMA and State Broadcasters, in Coordination with Emergency Managers, test the Emergency Alert System (EAS)

WASHINGTON — Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in coordination with state, local, tribal, and territorial emergency managers and state broadcasters’ associations, will conduct a [routine] test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) in nine states on Wednesday, June 15th at 2:20 PM MDT/1:20 PM PDT.

Broadcasters from the following locations are voluntarily participating in the test: California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Washington. The EAS test is made available to radio, broadcast and cable television systems and is scheduled to last approximately one minute.

The test will verify the delivery and broadcast, and assess the readiness for distribution of a national-level test message. The message of the test will be similar to the regular monthly test message of EAS, normally heard and seen by the public: “This is a national test of the Emergency Alert System. This is only a test.”

Public safety officials need to be sure that in times of an emergency or disaster, they have the methods and systems that will deliver urgent alerts and warnings to the public when needed. 

The EAS test might also be seen and heard in states and tribal areas that border the participating states as well as in Canada and Mexico.

Periodic testing of public alert and warning systems is a way to assess the operational readiness of the infrastructure required for the distribution of a national message and determine what technological improvements need to be addressed. The next national test is scheduled for September 28, 2016.   Results from this test will support preparations and improvements leading up to the national test. 

More information on the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) is available at www.fema.gov/ipaws or www.ready.gov/alerts.

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FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

Source: 

FEMA and State Broadcasters, in Coordination with Emergency Managers, test the Emergency Alert System (EAS)

FEMA, State Broadcasters and Emergency Managers to Conduct a Test in Four States of the Emergency Alert System

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with state and tribal emergency managers and state broadcasting associations, will conduct a test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on Wednesday, March 18, 2015 in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. The test will begin at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) and will last approximately one minute. 

“The goal of the test is to assess the operational readiness and effectiveness of the EAS to deliver a national emergency test message to radio, television and cable providers who broadcast lifesaving alerts and emergency information to the public,” said Damon Penn, Assistant Administrator of FEMA’s National Continuity Programs. “The only way to demonstrate the resilience of the system’s infrastructure is through comprehensive testing to ensure that members of tribes, and the residents of Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee, receive alerts when an emergency occurs.”

The test will be seen and heard over radio and television in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee, similar to regular monthly testing of the EAS conducted by state officials and broadcasters. The test message will be nearly identical to the regular monthly tests of the EAS normally heard by public. Only the word “national” will be added to the test message: “This is a national test of the Emergency Alert System. This is only a test…” 

The test is designed to have limited impact on the public, with only minor disruptions of radio and television programs that normally occur when broadcasters regularly test EAS in their area. Broadcasters and cable operators’ participation in the test is completely voluntary. There is no Federal Communications Commission regulatory liability for stations that choose not to participate.

In 2007, FEMA began modernizing the nation’s public alert and warning system by integrating new technologies into existing alert systems. The new system is known to broadcasters and local alerting officials as the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System or IPAWS. IPAWS connects public safety officials, such as emergency managers, police and fire departments, to multiple communications channels to send alerts to warn when a disaster happens. For more information, please visit www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/31814.

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FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

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FEMA, State Broadcasters and Emergency Managers to Conduct a Test in Four States of the Emergency Alert System

FEMA and Premiere Networks Work Together to Increase Preparedness

WASHINGTON — The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today announced a cooperative effort with Premiere Networks and private sector broadcasters that will provide an alternative method for radio stations to receive emergency information during a national emergency.

FEMA has added Premiere Networks — a nationally-syndicated audio network that reaches more than 190 million weekly listeners — as a Primary Entry Point station, which delivers information and instructions to the public in an emergency when there is no commercial power.  As part of the cooperative effort, Premiere, would use its satellite program receivers in thousands of affiliate radio stations across the country as another tool for delivering national Emergency Alert System (EAS) messages.  The radio affiliates would in turn broadcast the emergency messages to the public within its network.

“This cooperative effort between FEMA and Premiere Networks is one of the latest initiatives to engage the private sector’s cooperation in raising community preparedness across the nation,” said Damon Penn, Assistant Administrator of FEMA’s National Continuity Program. “We count on the broadcasting industry to alert and warn the public through the standard broadcast Emergency Alert System (EAS) including AM, FM, and satellite radio, as well as broadcast, cable and satellite TV, if a national emergency occurs,” said Penn.

FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System or IPAWS permits national emergency alert messages to be delivered simultaneously through multiple communications devices.  While a presidential EAS message has never been activated, IPAWS provides the President with a way to address the American people within 10 minutes of a national emergency.  Other alerting authorities include State, local, territorial, and Tribal public safety officials designated to communicate alerts. 

For more information on FEMA programs, go to www.fema.gov/ipaws

FEMA does not endorse any non-government entities, organizations, or services.  FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Original source: 

FEMA and Premiere Networks Work Together to Increase Preparedness