What to Expect During Emergency Alert Tests on May 8

If an emergency alert sounds on your cell phone May 8, don’t panic.

The federal government is performing a test of its national alert system as part of Emergency Preparedness Week. The system, known as Alert Ready, provides alerts about potentially dangerous or important events such as earthquakes, fires, floods, tornadoes, terror threats, and Amber alerts.

Canada’s National Public Alerting System (NPAS) is running tests on television, radio, and all compatible wireless devices in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nunavut and Yukon shortly before 2 p.m. EST.

Canadians in Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island will also receive a test message, but it will come from their province or territory instead, said Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan in a press release. Ontarians can expect the Alert Ready test on May 15.

“Regular testing and evaluation of the NPAS is necessary to ensure that, when an emergency or disaster falling under federal responsibility occurs, the Government of Canada is prepared to deliver urgent and lifesaving warnings to the public,” Mr. Sajjan said.

The sound will simulate the tone of an emergency alert, according to an Alert Ready press release. Radio and television broadcasters may also use an audio version of the test alert message through text-to-speech software.

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For your wireless phone to receive the alert, it needs to be connected to an LTE network, most commonly used in connection with 4G, or a 5G wireless network when the emergency alert is issued, according to an Alert Ready press release. Cell phones set to silent will display an emergency alert on screen but will not play the alert tone. The alert will show up on-screen as a test, meaning no action is required from the public.

Canadians do not have an option to opt out of the test or actual emergency alerts distributed through Alert Ready, says Pelmorex Public Alerting director Martin Belanger.

“The Alert Ready system is a critical service that helps keep Canadians safe,” Mr. Belanger said in the press release. “Testing provides an opportunity to raise awareness about the Alert Ready system and to validate that it works as intended in case of an actual emergency.”

The Alert Ready system was developed by federal, provincial, and territorial government officials, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Pelmorex, the broadcasting industry, and wireless service providers.