(Image: FEMA)

Get ready for a cacophony at 11:20 AM. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has announced a Wednesday morning, October 4th national test of the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System:

The national test will help ensure that Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) and the Emergency Alert System (EAS) continue to be effective ways to warn the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national level. All major U.S. wireless providers participate in Wireless Emergency Alerts and will transmit the national test to their subscribers. If your mobile phone is on and within range of an active cell tower from a participating wireless provider, you should receive the national test. Wireless providers will transmit the national test for 30 minutes, but your phone should only receive it once.

In addition to buzzing phones, the EAS portion of the test will be sent to radios and televisions.

As for wireless phones, FEMA says message that will appear will read: “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed.”

The EAS test message will be similar to the regular monthly test messages heard on local stations like KEXP “with which the public is familiar,” FEMA says.

Officials say legislation passed in 2015 requires FEMA to conduct nationwide tests of IPAWS at least once every three years. The tests can include WEA, EAS and other alert and warning systems. The most recent national test was in 2021 when the text message included an even freakier “Presidential Alert” header.

The county also offers local emergency messages by cell phone, landline, and email via ALERT King County at kingcounty.gov/ALERTKingCounty. You can sign up for City of Seattle alerts at alert.seattle.gov.

The MyShake earthquake early warning system phone app funded by the state and created by seismologists at UC Berkeley is also now available to provide alerts in Washington.

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