Between Netflix and that, this week in February has several key days. After several months of trials where you may have been one of the chosen ones, The new Es-Alert emergency system is now officially operational on all iPhones (and other smartphones) in USA from today, February 22, 2023.
And not only that: there has already been a real urgency with which Es-Alert has been able to prove itself. If you live in the area of Cabanillas del Campo, Guadalajara, you may already be familiar with these new alerts.
“Alert, alert, alert”
ES-Alert goes into service this midnight throughout USA.
• Messages to mobiles in areas affected by emergencies or disasters.
• Coverage 2G (GSM), 3G (UMTS), 4G (LTE) or 5G.#digitization #connectivity #RecoveryPlan.https://t.co/rsCaFAU3fQ— Recovery plan (@P_Recuperacion) February 21, 2023
What happened in Cabanillas del Campo is the leak of a gas pipeline, which led to the implementation of the Castilla-La Mancha territorial emergency plan. The breakout has already been resolved and there were no injuries of any kind to report.
But the fact was a perfect scenario for the Es-Alert system to issue its first emergency to the residents who lived around it. All received an alert indicating the accident accompanied by the following beep:
Thank you to everyone who was close to the escape they were able to notice it and react facing a possible danger that could have been much greater than it ended up being (thankfully). A perfect way to start.
This sound will appear even when you have the iPhone on silent or at low volume, and you will only hear it when there is an emergency near you. An earthquake, a gas leak, a terrorist attack… any serious incident or disaster that forces you to stop whatever you are doing.
How to Check That Emergency Alerts Are Enabled on Your iPhone
These serious alerts are enabled by default on all iPhones, but it never hurts to check them in case you turned them off at some point (not recommended, as you can rely on them in high-risk situations). On your iPhone, go to Settings then Notifications:
In this section, scroll to the bottom and check that the option ‘Civil protection pre-alerts‘ is on:
As we usually say, this is one of the notifications that we never want to hear but would appreciate to have always active. I hope you never have to take advantage of it.
