FEMA, FCC Conducting Tests Of Public Alert And Warning Infrastructures In Rutherford County

Press release from the Rutherford County Government:

August 10, 2021

FEMA and the Federal Communications Commission will test the nation’s public alert and warning systems at 2:20 p.m. ET on Wednesday, August 11, 2021.

FEMA regularly tests the public alert and warning systems to assess the operational readiness of the supporting infrastructure. The tests help identify any needed technical and administrative improvements to warning the public about emergencies.

This week’s testing will be the sixth test of the nationwide public alert and warning systems and has been planned since June 2020. The test’s purpose is to assess the effectiveness of the Emergency Alert System to receive and convey a national message via radio and television, and of the Wireless Emergency Alerts infrastructure to deliver a test message to mobile phones.

FEMA is asking you to participate in the first-of-its-kind Wireless Emergency Alerts live test survey. We want your feedback about how this test performs in your area. Wireless Emergency Alerts provide life-saving information to the public during emergencies, and it is important to know if they are reaching their intended audience. Every piece of information you provide will help our effort.

Instructions that guide you through the test survey process are at this link (PDF). These instructions also explain how to enable your Android or iOS phone to receive WEA tests

This press release was produced by the Rutherford County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.