Emergency Alert System<\/a> is just that, a test.<\/p>\n<\/p>\nThis is the first time there has been a nationwide test of the system, and there is concern that it could trigger calls to 911 from people unfamiliar with the process, according to a State Patrol media release.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWe think a national test is a great idea, and probably overdue,\u201d said Mark Layhew, director of the State Patrol\u2019s communications division. \u201cBut we don\u2019t want people wondering about it and calling 911 for information.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Layhew stressed that people should only call 911 when they need police, fire or medical help in response to an incident.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople should never call 911 to ask about power outages, road blockages or in this case, tests of a national warning system,\u201d Layhew said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The test will happen at 11 a.m. Wednesday. It will be similar to the regular weekly and monthly tests done by broadcasters, but will originate with the federal government.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
During the test, no matter where citizens tune their radio or television (broadcast, cable or satellite), people will hear the same test tones and message. The test is anticipated to last about 30 seconds.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
No action by citizens is required in response to the test.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
State Patrol dispatchers will not spend a lot of time on the phone with callers who are inquiring about the test. They have been instructed to quickly end those calls.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWe never know what the next phone call will bring. It could be a real emergency that needs our attention,\u201d Layhew said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
For more information about the test, go to: http:\/\/transition.fcc.gov\/cgb\/consumerfacts\/eas.pdf.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Washington State Patrol is reminding everyone that the 11 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9 national test of the Emergency Alert System is just that, a test.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":226,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-11944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11944"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/226"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11944"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11944\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11944"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=11944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}