Glitches Reported During FEMA's First-Ever National Emergency Alert System Test
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - The first-ever nationwide test of the country's Emergency Alert System was conducted Wednesday.
But did you hear or see it?
The 30-second test of the emergency alert system was scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. Eastern Time, but it appears there were problems with the audio message. Some viewers reported seeing the alert, however, several radio listeners reported hearing nothing but dead air for 30 seconds. Others reported hearing a garbled message.
The test is similar to local emergency alert system tests. Today's test was the first time the system had been activated nationally.
If there is ever a catastrophic event such as terrorist attack or major national disaster, the president could use the system to make an official announcement.
Roughly two hours after the test occurred, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman released this statement to BusinessInsider.com:
"The weaknesses exposed by today's test of the emergency alert system are unacceptable. Government and media carriers must work together to make sure the system does what it is intended to do, which is to transmit a nationwide message from the President in a crisis. I commend FEMA for carrying out this long-overdue, first-ever, nationwide test of the system. Without it, we would never have known the extent of the system's vulnerabilities."
Did you see or hear the test? Let us know below
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