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FEMA National Test education

U

ustabnassau

A lot….if not all…the focus on EAS as of late has been on CAP and IPAWS, but wait a second, before all that new stuff happens we need to truly test the National relay ability of the existing EAS system. The FCC and FEMA have announced that a sometime later this year there will be a nation wide test of a real EAN activation. Smaller tests of just such a thing have been conducted in Alaska and a lot of issues and successes came to light. Building on the information gathered in Alaska, FEMA along with the SBE and other government and industry experts have put together an education series to help educate the broadcast community as well as the Federal Government about the national test. FEMA will be sponsoring a series of “Virtual Roundtables” via Live Meeting beginning on June 9th. There will be separate sessions for radio and TV.

Leading up to June 9th FEMA has setup a website for individuals to share their ideas, concerns and comments about the national test. The comments left on this “Idea Scale” website will drive the direction of the FEAM Virtual Roundtables. This make it very important that as many broadcasters as possible contribute their thoughts to the Idea Scale website. The more comments, ideas and concerns that are submitted the better! It will only help make the national test and the entire EAS system better!
https://nationaldialogue-emergencyalertsystem.ideascale.com/
 
Something tells me a national test would most defiantly show that there are plenty areas of the country that can't even get the test. I believe it would be an epic failure. I agree it needs to be done though to show the faults. The problem with the system is no backbone distribution system is provided. As with most things government it is poorly planned and supported. The new crap will just add layers of epic failure to a bad foundation.
 
So when are our "friends" in the celular wireless industry going to get to "enjoy" the "benefits" of the burden of a Eas/ipaws system as a unfunded mandate? Why are we as broadcasters required to keep dumping 3k every 15 years into a rathole yet they aren't currently required to do a damn thing?
 
Can you say "swine fornication"? That's exactly what a national test would be. The EAS is good for relaying weather alerts, that's about it.
 
Amen to that. We have a 3000 dollar weather-repeat box for all our trouble and money. I'm truly not against that idea, but our current boxes are doing a FINE job of repeating weather. In fact, something for 70 dollars down at Rat Shack could probably be set up to do the same thing actually. LOL! When the Feds and local EM people get around to waking up someyear and decide THEY are going to want to SERVE THE PUBLIC, I'll happily be a participant in the EAS/CRAP/IFLAWS system. Until then, it's just another unfair burden on our industry. Who else keeps getting forced to upgrade equipment and keep burdensome logging like we do? I'm sure there's some industries that are heavily regulated, but honestly I think ours is one of the most over-regulated even in this age of "deregulation" where we get to even pay for the harrasment ourselves in regulatory fees. What a crock.
 
Who else keeps getting forced to upgrade equipment and keep burdensome logging like we do?
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Here's another one. The "Calm" act.

And yes, the monitors can log the audio levels in case the FCC comes a calling.
 
Re: FEMA National Test Wed. Nov. 9th, 2011 2pm EST

http://blog.fema.gov/2011/11/open-letter-nationwide-emergency-alert.html

The first ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System will occur on Wednesday, November 9, at 2:00 p.m. EST. As part of our public education campaign, we wrote this open letter to ensure that all Americans are aware of the test and know what to expect.

"We Have Assumed Control..."

Quoting FEMA:

Nov. 4, 2011

Dear Partner,

As part of our nation’s ongoing efforts to strengthen our resilience against all hazards, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in close coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), will conduct the first ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System on Wednesday, November 9, at 2:00 p.m. EST. The test will occur simultaneously across the United States and the U.S. territories and will last approximately 30 seconds, after which regular programming will resume. The test will appear on all broadcast radio and television stations, cable television systems, satellite radio and television systems, and wireline video service systems. The test will not involve landline or mobile phones or other infrastructure such as power grids.

The various disasters our country has faced this year underscore the need for effective and well-tested emergency alert and warning systems that could be used in a time of real national emergency, at a moment’s notice. Now, with the test less than a week away, we ask that you join us in efforts to educate your entire community about this important event.

Although the Emergency Alert System and its predecessors have been in existence for more than 50 years and are often tested at the local level, there has never been a nationwide test of these capabilities. The purpose of the test is to allow FEMA and the FCC to assess how well the Emergency Alert System would perform its primary function: alerting the public about a national emergency.

The first step toward building a modernized Emergency Alert System means testing the existing technology. Through preparations for the test, we have already identified areas that need improvement to ensure our entire population has full access to alerts and warnings. This nationwide test will help us identify any additional changes to the system that may be beneficial as we work to complete a modernized and fully accessible system.
Click to expand...
 
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