The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) have scheduled a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System for mid-November.
In a press release this week, the agencies said the test will take place November 17 around 2:20 p.m. Eastern Time (11:20 a.m. Pacific Time). Within a 30-minute period, broadcast radio and TV stations and others required to issue emergency notifications will send the test alert.
If FEMA and the FCC are unable to conduct the test on November 17, the agencies say the test will be rescheduled to December 3 at the same time.
FEMA will transmit the test through the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System using the Nationwide Test of the EAS event code. The message will be geographically targeted nationwide using the All-US geocode and distributed in English and Spanish.
The test message will identify the alert as a nationwide FEMA test and tell the public that no action is required.
Americans will receive the test notification across multiple platforms, including broadcast radio, broadcast TV, regional cable TV systems, satellite TV, SiriusXM radio and on mobile devices like cell phones and wireless-connected tablets.
The event will be the first time in three years that federal agencies have tested the nationwide Emergency Alert System through its broadcast and wireless partners. While localized and regional Emergency Alert System messages are common, federal agencies have never activated the national system during an actual emergency.
Ahead of the test, the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau is encouraging EAS participants to review operating procedures and state monitoring assignments, ensure required handbooks are available to operators, update equipment software and firmware and confirm that equipment clocks are synchronized with official time sources.
