Germany's emergency alert system test reveals problems

BERLIN

Germany's test on Thursday for the emergency alert system has revealed various problems.

The Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance tested sirens, emergency alert text messages, and warning apps at 11 a.m. local time.

All cell phone users were supposed to get warning messages even without an internet connection on their phones. But for some cell phone users, the devices remained silent.

Even the all-clear scheduled for 11.45 a.m. does not seem to have reached everyone, as reported by the news magazine Focus.

According to initial information, many customers of the provider Telekom in particular did not receive the warnings.

The warning apps NINA and Katwarn also did not display any messages for some users, or only more than 20 minutes after the deadline.

From the perspective of mobile phone company Vodafone, the first test of the new disaster warning system Cell Broadcast was "a complete success," Focus further reported.

The test alarm was also broadcast on radio and television stations.

With the nationwide warning day, the authority wanted to find out how many people a warning of danger would reach in an emergency.

There was already a first nationwide warning day on Sept. 10, 2020. However, it failed almost completely. The warning messages arrived on the warning apps Nina and Katwarn only with a good half-hour delay.

Many citizens would not have noticed anything if it had been an emergency. Accordingly, the Federal Interior Ministry called the 2020 trial alert a "failure."

A new test day is planned for September 2023.