The Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) announced it is testing alerting systems enabled in counties statewide on Thursday, April 2. The goal is to ensure the tools can effectively warn the community by seeing how they function.
“Conducting drills to reaffirm procedures, promote confidence in technological tools, and identify potential shortfalls is key to ensuring these systems operate with precision, accuracy, and timeliness when they are needed the most.” TDEM Management Chief Nim Kidd said in a press release.
Colleges, universities, and law enforcement agencies are a few TDEM partners that are participating in the drill. Folks in San Antonio and other cities might receive a phone notification, see messages on their local television stations, or hear segments about it on their radios. Warning sirens may also start sounding off, per a post from the City of San Antonio Municipal Government.
This is happening smack dab in the middle of the workday, so there is a chance any meetings or presentations may be interrupted. TDEM Chief of Media & Communications Wes Rapaport tells MySA the testing window is set for 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CT.
Guardians may also consider explaining the event to young children, as students may notice loud sounds or persistent phone alerts during their school day.
“No action is needed,” the Bexar County Emergency Services Department No. 4 said in a social media post. “The purpose of this drill is to ensure systems are ready for real emergencies. Although BCOEM is not sending out a live alert on this day, an alert or multiple alerts may be received by other entities.”