On Wednesday, November 9th, Stearns County will be joining the rest of the country in a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). 

Emergency Management Director Marvin Klug said the test will take place at 1:00 p.m. and will be similar to those people hear monthly on their local radio and television stations. Having the test nationwide will help determine the reliability of the system and its effectiveness in notifying the nation of a public emergency. The test will also show improvements that can be made in the EAS test to better serve the communities.

State and local governments use the EAS to send weather and other emergency alerts, but there has never been a national activation of the system. The nationwide test will be conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency, The Federal Communications Commission and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.