National launch of life-saving public emergency alerts and date of test message
You may have seen on the national news, or more recently on our own social media, information about the UK-wide Emergency Alerts service that the Government has launched. You can read the full story online at Gov.uk.
The national test of this system will take place on 23rd April.
The UK government’s new Emergency Alerts system is now live.
The system will enable people to be contacted via their mobile phone
when lives are in danger.
It will be used to warn you in the event of emergencies, such as
severe flooding.
Emergency Alerts are sent to all compatible mobile phones within an
area of risk. They don’t track your location, need your phone number,
or collect personal data. Only the government and the emergency
services will be able to send them. If you don’t have a mobile phone,
you’ll still be kept informed through other channels.
If you get an Emergency Alert on your phone, you’ll hear a loud,
siren-like sound. A message on your screen will tell you about the
emergency and how best to respond. You’ll be able to check an alert
is genuine at gov.uk/alerts
If you receive an alert, read the alert carefully and follow the
instructions.
You can opt out of receiving emergency alerts; for more information
on how to opt out please go to gov.uk/alerts
To find out more about Emergency Alerts, visit gov.uk/alerts
The government has also produced an FAQ which I have also attached for information.
