South Bay Emergency Alert Test Scheduled For May

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — South Bay residents can expect a test emergency alert to hit their cellphones in the morning on Tuesday, May 7 as officials test the Alert South Bay system.

In coordination with the Federal Communications Commission and the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System, the test alert aims to measure the capability of the system for the South Bay region. The test will be directed to consumer cell phones at about 11:30 a.m., officials said.

This will be the second test of the alert system this year, following issues that were observed in the Jan. 9 test. Officials said they detected issues with the hyperlinks and service provider coverage.

"These tests are designed to maintain the effectiveness of the systems in alerting the public about
emergencies," officials said. "The forthcoming test is additionally intended to clarify the reasons for the failures observed in the previous test."

Alert South Bay is a service utilized by residents to keep the community informed about local crime, events and emergencies. Residents are able to sign up for emails and text alerts on the service's website.

On May 7, residents can expect to receive the test message only once during the region-wide test. During the test, all wireless phones that are switched on within range of an active call tower will be able to get the message.

The message will read:

"THIS IS A TEST of the Alert SouthBay Regional Wireless Emergency Alert System. No action is needed. For information about this alert, please visit www.alertsouthbay.com”

Phones with the main menu set to Spanish will display:

“ESTA ES UNA PRUEBA del Sistema Regional de Alerta de Emergencia. No se necesita acción.”

Similarly to when phones receive Amber Alerts, the tone will only play when the alert is received and can easily be turned off as soon as the user clicks a button. If a phone is off before the test alert is sent and not turned on until after the alert is sent, users should not get the message.