FIRST TEST OF NATIONAL ALARM SOUNDS ACROSS THE UK

Sun 23 Apr 2023:

Millions of mobile phones in the United Kingdom rang with a siren on Sunday as part of a test for a new national emergency warning system.

The loud alarm was planned to ring at 3 pm (1400 GMT) on all devices that were using 4G and 5G networks in Britain.

The alert rang for 10 seconds and displayed a message notifying phone users that no action was needed in response to the test.

Some cellphones also read the message aloud to recipients.

Following the test, some users reported receiving the notice a minute or two earlier.

Others, however, claimed that their phone did not display the message or emit a sound.

Phones that were turned off or in airplane mode were not supposed to make a sound.

The emergency alert system is designed to warn the public if there is a danger to life nearby.

In future, a similarly loud notification and message will be sent to those the British government is seeking to reach.

Once established, the system is intended to be used in life-threatening situations including flooding and wildfires.

Speaking before the test, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden conceded the drill could be “annoying” but that it had the potential to save people’s lives once rolled out.

He told Sky News that the trial run was a “bit like when the fire alarm goes off at work.”

“It’s a bit irritating at the time but in the future people could be grateful for it because in a real emergency, this could be the sound that saves your life,” he told Sky News.

The Cabinet minister denied the new system was an example of nanny state interference, telling the BBC he did not accept “that characterisation.”

People who do not wish to receive future alerts will be able to opt out using their device settings but officials hope the life-saving potential of the messages means users will keep them on.

The entertainment and sport sectors had been planning how to guard against disruption to large events when the test went off.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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