B.C. to test emergency alert system Wednesday
![B.C. emergency alert B.C. emergency alert](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2022/5/4/b-c--emergency-alert-1-5888682-1651698160718.png)
B.C. will be testing the emergency alert system Wednesday, sending a text message to cellphones and interrupting TV and radio broadcasts.
The test will take place at 1:55 p.m., according to officials.
"This test will assess the system’s readiness for an actual emergency and identify any required adjustments," according to a statement from the B.C. government.
In 2022 – after several devastating and deadly emergencies – the province expanded the use of this system to include warnings about floods, wildfires and extreme heat. Prior to that, it was used for tsunami warnings.
This year's wildfire season, the worst on record, saw the alert used 24 times when evacuations were ordered, the province says.
Alerts can also be sent by police in the event of an Amber Alert or a public safety emergency, such as an active shooter situation.
The system is tested twice each year. British Columbians are being reminded not to call 911 when they receive a test alert.
The message displayed on cellphones will read:
“This is a TEST of the BC Emergency Alert system. This is ONLY a TEST. In an emergency, this message would tell you what to do to stay safe. This information could save your life. Click for more info: www.emergencyinfobc.ca/test. This is ONLY a TEST. No action is required.”
More information on the system is available online.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6969824.1721357192!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Trump describes assassination attempt in personal detail as he accepts Republican nomination
Donald Trump, sombre and bandaged, accepted the GOP presidential nomination on Thursday at the Republican National Convention in a speech that described in detail the assassination attempt that could have ended his life just five days earlier before laying out a sweeping populist agenda, particularly on immigration.
Here's what happened on the final night of the RNC
The final day of the Republican National Convention was underway in Milwaukee where Donald Trump made a lengthy speech.
'We had a good run': High-profile Liberal minister quitting cabinet, not running in next election
Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan has announced he will not run in the next federal election, and will be quitting his cabinet position Friday.
Shannen Doherty granted divorce days after death
Shannen Doherty finalized her split with husband, Kurt Iswarienko, just hours before her death at age 53, and she was granted a rare posthumous divorce two days later.
B.C. woman who thought Coldplay concert 'was a date' must pay ex for ticket, tribunal rules
A B.C. woman has been ordered to repay her ex for a ticket to Coldplay's 2023 concert in Vancouver – in a small claims decision that highlights the distinction between gifts and loans under Canadian law.
Boy who was reported missing from a resort near Disney World found dead in water
A three-year-old boy who was reported missing from a resort near Walt Disney World in central Florida early Thursday was found dead in a body of water on the resort's grounds several hours later, the sheriff's office said.
Northern Ont. OPP sergeant charged with impaired driving
An Ontario Provincial Police sergeant with 26 years of experience has been charged with impaired driving in Cochrane.
Once defiant, Biden is now 'soul searching' about dropping out of race: Reuters source
U.S. President Joe Biden is taking calls to step aside as the Democratic presidential candidate seriously and multiple Democratic officials think an exit is a matter of time, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
2 dead after small plane crashes in Tofino, B.C.
Two people died and a third was seriously injured in a fiery plane crash in Tofino, B.C., on Thursday, according to authorities.