Do not be surprised to hear an emergency test go off on your phone this afternoon. That same test will be heard on local radio stations.
Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure's Emergency Management Organization says this is an Alert Ready test through the National Public Alerting System. It will go out on multiple communication channels, including AM1250, MIX 96.7FM, and COUNTRY 107.7FM. The test will come down at 1:55 pm.
The province says testing of all components is an important and necessary part of any public alerting system. It provides an opportunity to validate and improve the end-to-end performance and reliability of the system to ensure it operates as it is intended on radio, TV and compatible wireless devices. Test alerts also educate the public on what an emergency alert will look, and sound like in the event of a life-threatening situation.
Not all Manitobans will receive today's test on their mobile devices. This may be for a variety of reasons including device compatibility, connection to an LTE network, cell tower coverage, and device software and settings.