Don’t be alarmed by the alert that will pop up and ping and ding your phone, TV or radio this afternoon. The 2:20 p.m. ET warning is a test of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s nationwide Emergency Alert System and Wireless Test Alerts.
Depending on a user’s phone settings, they will either get the alert in English or Spanish.
“It’s important to know that there is no need to panic and no needed action on your part. Thanks, @FEMA, for keeping us safe,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Dist. 8) said in a social media post.
Takoma Park Police and MoCo’s Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security provided advice for any domestic violence victims or anyone at risk:
Any security or safety phones may be detected during the alert test, and if an abuser does not know about the phone, they should turn it off, not just silence it, for the full 30 minutes after the alert starts to prevent any sounds or notifications.
This alert test is required at least once every three years and the last test was in 2021, FEMA said on its social media.
“The purpose of the test is to ensure that the systems continue to be effective means of warning the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national level,” FEMA stated in a press release.