Wireless users in the United States today are set to receive a ‘Presidential Alert’ test on their cellphones, to test out the nation’s new system.
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), text alerts will have the title ‘Presidential Alert’ and also make a loud sound and vibrate cellphones, to warn Americans of a national security crisis.
The texts being sent out will read “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.”
The CRTC is informing Canadians if they are near the U.S. border, they may also receive this test alert, which is set to take place in about an hour at 11:18 pm PDT/2:18pm EDT:
Reminder: Today, starting at 2:18 pm (EDT), the U.S. @fema will conduct a nationwide emergency #alert test. If you find yourself near the U.S. border, you could receive the test alert on your #mobile, #TV & #radio.
❗️Reminder: Today, starting at 2:18 pm (EDT), the U.S. @fema will conduct a nationwide emergency #alert test. If you find yourself near the U.S. border, you could receive the test alert on your #mobile, #TV & #radio.
— CRTCeng (@CRTCeng) October 3, 2018
The CRTC says “When you receive a #publicalert, take note and take action – even if it’s just to confirm it’s a test!”
Canada has its own text message alerting system called Alert Ready, which launched earlier this spring. The system sends out alerts to wireless devices able to connect to LTE coverage, and so far it is still working out technical issues. Last month, the system failed to send out an Amber alert in Saskatchewan, as it was delayed for three hours.
