The Federal Emergency Management Agency in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission, will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System and Wireless Emergency Alerts on Wednesday, October 3, 2018. The Wireless Emergency Alert portion of the test, which will be sent to consumer cell phones, will begin at 1:18 p.m. The Emergency Alert System portion of the test, which will be sent to radio and television, will follow at 1:20 p.m. This will be the fourth nationwide EAS test and the first nationwide WEA test. In light of the upcoming test, the agencies share the following key informational points:
THE BASICS
• WHY: The purpose of the test is to ensure that EAS and WEA are both effective
means of warning the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national
level.
• HOW: The EAS and WEA test messages will be sent using FEMA’s Integrated Public
Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), a centralized Internet-based system administered
by FEMA that enables authorities to send authenticated emergency messages to the
public through multiple communications networks.
• WHO: FEMA will administer the test, in cooperation with the FCC and the National
Weather Service, and with the participation of the communications industry.
• WHEN: October 3, 2018, beginning at 1:18 p.m. on cell phones and 2:20 p.m.
on TV and radio. (This is the test back-up date; the test was previously postponed
due to response efforts to Hurricane Florence.)
The WEA test message will appear on consumers’ phones and read, “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless
Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.” Phones will display this national test using the header “Presidential Alert.” These nationwide alerts, established pursuant to the WARN Act of 2006, are meant for use in a national emergency and are the only type of alert that can be sent simultaneously nationwide by FEMA.
