news release

The Board of County Commissioners would like to advise all citizens and visitors of the County to be mindful that on October 4, 2023 there will be a nationwide emergency alert test that will be transmitted through all cell phones, televisions, and radios.

David Johnson, Director, Indian River County Emergency Services, explained, “FEMA, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA).

“The WEA test will begin around 2:20 p.m. EST and cell towers will broadcast the test for approximately 30 minutes,” said Johnson. The message will read, “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.”

The WEA portion of the test will be directed to all consumer cell phones. This will be the third nationwide test, but the second test to all cellular devices. The test message will display in either English or Spanish, depending on the language settings of the wireless handset.
The EAS portion of the test will be sent to radios and televisions. This will be the seventh nationwide EAS test. The purpose of the October 4th test is to ensure that the systems continue to be effective means of warning the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national level.

The test for the EAS will be similar to the regular monthly EAS test messages with which the public is familiar. It will state: “This is a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System, issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, covering the United States from 14:20 to 14:50 ET. This is only a test. No action is required by the public.”
“FEMA has identified a backup date in case the October 4th test is postponed due to widespread severe weather or other significant events,” said Johnson. The backup testing date is October 11th.