Emergency alert system went off without a hitch… nearly

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This article was published 28/11/2018 (2648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Despite glitches, the second Alert Ready public awareness test is being declared a success in Manitoba.

The province’s infrastructure minister, Ron Schuler, said the emergency alert system went off nearly without a hitch Wednesday.

Those with older cellphones or who had their phones turned off or on airplane mode may not have received the test warnings, but Schuler assured the technology is working fine.

“We believe we are close to 100 per cent coverage,” the minister told reporters shortly after the test ended at 1:55 p.m.

“If individuals did not get the message, we would suggest they talk to their providers, and it might be as easy as getting a patch on their phone. It might be something with the technology, probably it’s something with the programming.”

The emergency test message was distributed through radio, cable and satellite TV broadcasters, web feeds and compatible wireless devices. Each province and territory received the test message.

There were some instances of Manitobans getting alerts an hour early — the text message said it was distributed by Nunavut.

In an informal sample of 35 cellphones used by reporters and staff at the Free Press, 20 rang out with the alarm at 1:55 p.m., 15 others remained silent. Eight of the 20 phones which received the alert at 1:55 p.m. also received the alert from Nunavut at 12:55 p.m.

“Because this is a test and all the jurisdictions were on it, you would have gotten some jurisdictions bleeding over into others,” Schuler said. “If it was a tornado or whatever, it would be a localized message and that would be for that region.”

Mike Olczyk, operations program manager for the Emergency Measures Organization (the provincial department that initiates alerts), said EMO and its provincial, territorial and national counterparts — along with Pelmorex, the company which sends out the alert to the broadcasting industry and wireless service providers — will be looking into what worked and what didn’t work Wednesday.

“(The Alert Ready) is there to protect the safety of the public. If there is an emergency or disaster, we want the public to know and where to get more information… When Manitobans receive these alerts, share it with your friends and relatives.”

Olczyk said Manitobans are already letting EMO know whether or not they received the alert, via an online form at www.manitoba.ca/emo/.

“Right now, they’re still examining it,” Olczyk said, as to why many Manitobans received the alert intended for Nunavut residents.

jessica.botelho@freepress.mb.ca

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca