First
National Test of the
Nationwide Emergency Alert
System (EAS)
Importance: High
On November 9th FEMA, DHS
and FCC will conduct the
first national test of the
Nationwide Emergency Alert
System (EAS) test. This test
will kick off at 2:00
p.m. (EST). The test will
be nationwide, running
concurrently across all time
zones.
This system test is the
first of its kind. It is
designed to broadcast a
nationwide message to the
American public. Nothing
like it has been conducted
in the history of the
country. There have been
tests in the past but none
to
all parts of the Nation at
the same time. The test
will run concurrently on all
radio and TV band and the
message will run for three
(3) minutes. Most messages
in the past were anywhere
from 30 seconds to
one minute.
There is great concern in
local police and emergency
management circles about
undue public anxiety over
this test. The test message
on TV might not indicate
that it is just a test.
Fear is that the lack of an
explanation message might
create panic. Please share
this information with your
agency, family and
friends, so they are aware
of the test.
Below are two websites, that
will provide more
information regarding this
test.
http://www.fema.gov/emergency/ipaws/eas_info.shtm
https://nationaldialogue-emergencyalertsystem.ideascale.com/