Don't Be Alarmed, Just A Test
Last updated 6/27/2019 at 8:53am
Don't worry, it is just a test.
Mobile phones in the San Diego County area will receive a test ShakeAlert Thursday June 27, scheduled for 11 a.m.
The San Diego County Office of Emergency Services and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services and the United States Geological Survey, will test a wireless emergency alert system on mobile phones throughout the county.
The test will evaluate the effectiveness of ShakeAlert, an earthquake early warning system. Much like Amber Alerts, ShakeAlerts will send mobile phones a message, preceded by a loud tone.
State and local officials have worked with the USGS to develop the ShakeAlert system since 2006, using underground seismic activity sensors to detect the first ripples of an earthquake.
The system's first phase went into effect last fall in California, Oregon and Washington. Eventually, USGS officials hope to expand the alert system across the country to alert people when a quake of magnitude 5.0 or above is about to strike.
