Emergency Alert System tested nationwide for 1st time

U.S. officials on Wednesday conducted the first-ever nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System, with its familiar "this is a test… this is only a test" language.

CNN reported that the test was supposed to air on every broadcast, cable and satellite TV station in the country, along with every AM, FM and satellite radio station. The test was designed to last 30 seconds from start to finish. 

"I think the biggest reason nobody ever tested it was because of all the concerns of what could happen and what could go wrong," Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Craig Fugate told CNN. "We take a different approach. If we don't test it, we don't know what we need to fix."

According to The New York Times, people around the country reported not seeing or hearing the test:

Many of the reported failures affected cable and satellite television subscribers, and some were quite puzzling. Some DirecTV subscribers said their TV sets played the Lady Gaga song “Paparazzi” when the test was under way. Some Time Warner Cable subscribers in New York said the test never appeared on screen. Some Comcast subscribers in northern Virginia said their TV sets were switched over to QVC before the alert was shown.

After the test, the agencies in charge, FEMA and the FCC, issued a statement saying they were analyzing the results.

“This initial test was the first time we have tested the reach and scope of this technology and additional improvements that should be made to the system as we move forward,” the statement said. “Only through comprehensively testing, analyzing and improving these technologies can we ensure an effective and reliable national emergency alert and warning system.”

CNN reported that stations must report the results to the FCC within 45 days, but that the agency will not test data to the public.