# Emergency Alert System Nationwide Test Nov 9th 2011 2:00 PM EST



## oldschoolecw (Jan 25, 2007)

Emergency Alert System Nationwide Test Nov 9th 2011 2:00 PM EST

http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/emergency-alert-system-nationwide-test



> At the Federal Communications Commission's June 9, 2011 Agenda meeting, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau Chief Jamie Barnett, joined by representatives from FEMA and the National Weather Service, announced that the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) would take place at 2:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time) on November 9, 2011. The purpose of the test is to assess the reliability and effectiveness of the EAS as a public alert mechanism. EAS Participants currently participate in state-level monthly tests and local-level weekly tests, but no top-down review of the entire system has ever been undertaken. The Commission, along with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, will use the results of this nationwide test to assess the reliability and effectiveness of the EAS as a public alert mechanism, and will work together with EAS stakeholders to make improvements to the system as appropriate.


More at the link above


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## JACKIEGAGA (Dec 11, 2006)

Thanks for the heads up


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## oldschoolecw (Jan 25, 2007)

JACKIEGAGA said:


> Thanks for the heads up


I just thought it was strange that they are doing it Nationwide, if I didn't know about it and was channel surfing and saw the test on every channel I would be like WTF? Godzilla must be real, and he must be attacking America :lol:


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## John W (Dec 20, 2005)

oldschoolecw said:


> I just thought it was strange that they are doing it Nationwide, if I didn't know about it and was channel surfing and saw the test on every channel I would be like WTF? Godzilla must be real, and he must be attacking America :lol:


\

Be worried about the one exactly a year from this one.


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

oldschoolecw said:


> I just thought it was strange that they are doing it Nationwide, if I didn't know about it and was channel surfing and saw the test on every channel I would be like WTF? Godzilla must be real, and he must be attacking America :lol:


I expect the day before it will be on several news programs


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## SayWhat? (Jun 7, 2009)

oldschoolecw said:


> I just thought it was strange that they are doing it Nationwide, if I didn't know about it and was channel surfing and saw the test on every channel I would be like WTF? Godzilla must be real, and he must be attacking America :lol:


Think George Orwell and his classic radio play.


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

SayWhat? said:


> Think George Orwell and his classic radio play.


I think you mean Orson Welles


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## SayWhat? (Jun 7, 2009)

Probably.

Same difference.


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## TomH (Jun 11, 2005)

SayWhat? said:


> Probably.
> 
> Same difference.


Hardly


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

What amuses me is that all of the announcements are for eastern time only. What about the other three time zones?


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## mike1977 (Aug 26, 2005)

John W said:


> \
> 
> Be worried about the one exactly a year from this one.




Harold Camping ring a bell?


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## trh (Nov 3, 2007)

Mark Holtz said:


> What amuses me is that all of the announcements are for eastern time only. What about the other three time zones?


And I'm amused that you didn't mention all five other US time zones.


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## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

Consider Russia with their 11 time zones. Somebody is going to be awakened in the middle of the night!

If Russia were to have a nationwide test of their EAS, I would be _very_ concerned.


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## oldschoolecw (Jan 25, 2007)

Well today is the day, I'm heading off to the mountains where I will live like a Chipmunk underground. Will one of you kind people send up flares to alert me when all the Zombies have been eradicated


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## mike1977 (Aug 26, 2005)

Fail


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## klang (Oct 14, 2003)

CNN on in the background via Dish and I didn't notice anything.


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## oldschoolecw (Jan 25, 2007)

EPIC FAILURE
Local channel had it, USA network said about 1 minute before 2PM that it would be testing with a scroll across the screen, but it never happened :lol: I did not notice if any other cable networks had it work for them


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## renbutler (Oct 17, 2008)

I noticed a message on a couple DirecTV channels but didn't take the time to read it.

Turned to the local CBS affiliate, and there was no test. I turned to the local NBC affiliate, and the EAS screen was on.


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## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

Well, I wouldn't call it epic...

but obviously some tested, some didn't.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

Checked a local channel, there was an audio announcement that I could hardly understand, DIRECTV had no audio announcement.


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## oldschoolecw (Jan 25, 2007)

Stuart Sweet said:


> Well, I wouldn't call it epic...
> 
> but obviously some tested, some didn't.


This is the U S Government doing this test, not some fly by night corporation, so yes this is EPIC:lol:


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## oldschoolecw (Jan 25, 2007)

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/08/us/emergency-alert-test/



> When millions of Americans hear that warning at 2 p.m. ET Wednesday, the words will sound familiar, but the occasion will be historic. It will mark the first-ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System, a system with Cold War roots that enables the president to address the American public within 10 minutes from any location at any time.


More at the link above


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## jsk (Dec 27, 2006)

I'm at work and I have access to analog Comcast in Baltimore County MD. The test ran OK, but the audio quality was horrible.

I tried Dish Online to see if I could connect to my DVR, but it crashed as usual. I'll have to check some recordings when I get home tonight.

They expected widespread failures so they can learn more about why they happen and how to prevent them when they revamp the system. I read that in parts of Oregon, no stations received the test.


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## MysteryMan (May 17, 2010)

Test ran OK but it took a few minutes for the audio to come back on some of my local channels.


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## BubblePuppy (Nov 3, 2006)

I Heard Lady GaGa's Paparazzi in the background. I was watching The USA channel. I never heard the sirens go off, and those are real close. I guess I'm dead.


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## SayWhat? (Jun 7, 2009)

^^ If you were listening to GagGag, I'd say so.


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## BubblePuppy (Nov 3, 2006)

"SayWhat?" said:


> ^^ If you were listening to GagGag, I'd say so.


And gone to hell.


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

Just when you think someone couldn't find a way to make this system even more likely to not work comes *As We Cut The Cord, Should Netflix And YouTube Recognize The Emergency Alert System?*:


> While curmudgeons damned the television for rotting brains and antiquating motivation, it long had one strength that even the most fervent of naysayers couldn't deny: at any given time, one could reach the eyes and ears of the majority of the nation. In case of an emergency, there was no better way to tell the masses to batten down the hatches and duct tape the windows.
> 
> Then came the DVR - an obstacle, but not one that went unconsidered. Then came the online streaming services - the Netflixes, the Hulus, the Youtubes - and the eyes found their new focus. Slowly but surely, the volume and efficacy of the Alert System began to taper&#8230; but does it have to?
> 
> While my tone above is obviously a bit exaggerated (most homes, do, after all, still have cable), the trend is quite clear: each day, more people cut the cord. And even amongst those who haven't and never will make such a move, hours spent consuming media bit-by-bit is skyrocketing. As the eyes and ears find new homes - or at least, new regular hang outs - is it the duty of the streaming services to act as the harbinger of bad news? Should Netflix, Hulu, et al. be required to fulfill the same emergency duties as the radio in the early 20th century and as the television in the latter half? If so: should all streaming sites be required to comply, or just the biggest ones?


But how about Forums like this one? Shouldn't a Moderator be obligated to start a thread telling us the world's coming to an end...?


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