Why FEMA blasted emergency alert tone on phones, TVs and radios across nation

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) sent alerts to people’s phones, TVs and radios on Wednesday afternoon – to test its national emergency alert systems.

At 2:20pm (ET), FEMA sent the alert to those who have opted-in to receive the test via their phones, and it lasted a minute.

The national test consisted of two portions which will test Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) and the Emergency Alert System (EAS).

According to FEMA, “The EAS national test is very similar to regular monthly tests typically originated by state authorities. During the test, radios and televisions across the country may interrupt normal programming to play the EAS test message. The message may be delivered in English or Spanish.”

“The WEA test will be directed only to consumer cell phones where the subscriber has opted-in to receive test messages, which will be in either English or Spanish, depending on the device’s language settings. Most mobile phones will not display the test message. In contrast, consumers will automatically receive real emergency alerts on compatible phones (even if they do not receive the test message).”

People took to Twitter about the announcement. One user admired the advanced tech and tweeted, “They’re helpful in case of natural disasters in the local area. Had it go off a couple times back in late June-early July.”

Others joked about popular – and questionable – conspiracy theories. “Great! This is going to activate the 5G chip you put in my arm with the COVID vaccine and turn me into a zombie! I knew it”, another added.

You can find information on how to opt-in for the test here.