EE-ALARM tests to become regular
This week, a regulation issued by the Minister of the Interior came into force, setting out how the EE-ALARM public warning system can be tested and used. From now on, the Estonian Rescue Services Agency will coordinate the development of the system, its testing and exercises, and will also inform the public about these activities.
“Developing public warning system is not a one-off project but an ongoing effort to ensure the safety of the entire population. The recent amendments to the Emergency Act and now this regulation do not mean we can rest on our laurels – quite the opposite. Within the Ministry of the Interior’s remit, we will continue to develop civil protection and the public warning system because technology and threats evolve, and it is vital to keep pace. A good alert system is one that is constantly improved. We will do our utmost to ensure that people are as well protected and promptly informed as possible in a crisis,” said Tuuli Räim, Deputy Secretary General for Crisis Preparedness and Civil Protection at the Ministry of the Interior.
“EE-ALARM tests are here to stay. In Estonia, active work on civil protection has only been underway for the past four years. During this time, we have developed an entirely new and complex public warning system, which will require further work in the coming years,” said Viktor Saaremets, Deputy Director General of the Estonian Rescue Services Agency. “Many European countries have had alert systems for decades and have tested them regularly to ensure they remain functional and reliable. We need to test our system primarily because it is completely new. It is crucial to identify weaknesses before a crisis: we do not want to learn painful lessons when the system is actually needed.”
The state is obliged to inform people in advance about all EE-ALARM tests and share details about the purpose of the test, its timing, and which alert channels will be used during the test or exercise.
The regulation also clarifies under what conditions the EE-ALARM system may be used in a real emergency to send alerts to the public. Different alert levels will be applied when sending notifications, as future developments will allow alerts to be triggered with varying intensity – for example, sounding an audible alarm on a smartphone even when it is set to silent in the event of a major threat. Describing the alert levels for different channels aims to ensure that EE-ALARM is used responsibly and that the choice of channels reflects the seriousness of the situation. For instance, the siren network cannot be used in situations where there is no immediate and direct threat to life and health, and safety can be ensured through other public warning channels.
Within a couple of years, alerts will also be automatically integrated with digital television services, which reach most people and ensure that information is delivered quickly and widely in unexpected situations. Currently, the EE-ALARM system consists of location-based SMS messages, mobile app notifications, ticker texts on ERR channels, and a nationwide siren network.
EE-ALARM is coordinated by the Estonian Rescue Services Agency in cooperation with the Emergency Response Centre, the Ministry of the Interior’s IT and Development Centre, and the State Communications Foundation.