The province is doing a test of B.C.’s national alert ready system at 2:55 p.m. (Mountain time) on Wednesday.
Last spring, the alert system was expanded to include alerts for wildfires, floods and extreme-heat emergencies, in addition to tsunamis, civil emergencies and Amber Alerts.
The test will be broadcast on radio and TV as well as wireless devices with this message.
“This is a TEST of the BC emergency alert system, issued by Emergency Management BC. This is ONLY a TEST. In an actual emergency, this message would contain instructions to help keep you and your community safe. Learn more about how, when and why emergency alerts are issued in BC at www.emergencyinfobc.ca/alert. This is ONLY a TEST. No action is required.”
To receive the alert on your cellphone, it must be connected to an LTE cellular network, turned on, not set to do not disturb or airplane mode and have up-to-date cellular software.
The system was launched in 2018 and is tested twice a year.