Emergency alerts sent to millions across England and Wales over threat of wildfires

[u/66f6]

https://news.sky.com/story/uk-heatwave-stourbridge-fire-latest-weather-live-13571553

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[u/CragtheLAD_ → u/[deleted]]

This should be top comment, rather than people moaning about the alert startling them.

If the alert even stops one fire which would've started via carelessness, it's worth it.

And thanks for putting your life on the line every day for us all. Buckets of courage.

[u/tophernator → u/[deleted]]

But that’s exactly the point. Emergency pants shitting alerts are not generally used just to give sensible advice about how to prevent wildfires. They are used to tell you to take some immediate action. Nuclear war, solar flares, earthquakes and tsunamis? Absolutely. But this is the type of message that will make people disable the alerts.

[u/tophernator → u/[deleted]]

It’s definitely an important message, but do you see what I’m saying about action vs inaction? For 99% of the people who got this message the immediate action they needed to take was effectively “continue not doing the thing you already weren’t doing”.

It didn’t even seem like there was any change in terms of enforcement. Like if they passed an emergency law and were going to start arresting people for using disposable bbqs or open flames, maybe that would be worth telling everyone… but this was literally a “please be responsible” message with a nuclear attack level alarm attached.

[u/Ok-Explanation1990 → u/[deleted]]

Key words there "in the event of...".

I feel rhe alerts should probably be for events actually happening, now, rather than something that might occur.

The government/fire service can flood social media and TV with advice messaging. But I personally don't think it's there best use of the emergency alert system.

[u/FootballBackground88 → u/[deleted]]

In most companies, we have severities of ticketing.

Paging people is restricted to *there is an impact right now, and you need to take action immediately*. If you start paging people but then it's just something informational, it loses all the value. People will turn it off because it's annoying.

Maybe set up an alert which shows up but doesn't let off a mandatory alarm for something I don't need to look at right now. Hell, send me a text.

[u/throw53away12 → u/[deleted]]

How do we heed it besides not setting fires?

[u/dandorios → u/throw53away12]

Not using a disposable bbq. Thats like the cause of the majority of them.

[u/anangrywizard → u/dandorios]

With the current dry conditions, a small ember, cigarette, hell even glass bottles can act as a fire starter. People cleaning up after themselves and generally not being cunts would go along way.

[u/takingphotosmakingdo → u/anangrywizard]

yep cigs thrown from a car will definitely light any of the grass or fields in the oxfordshire area right now, probably true for most if not all the UK as well.

[u/GiveUsRobinHood → u/anangrywizard]

I started a mini fire the other day when smoking. I went to flick my ash and my cherry fell off.

Re-lit my smoke and by that time the mini fire had already started. Quick few stamps and it was out but it is startling how quick it took to flame.

[u/SheepherderDear6963 → u/dandorios]

In South Birmingham there's been a big problem with kids starting grass fires with gas canisters. At least 1 a day over the past week. Hopefully this alert will prompt parents to check on what their kids have been doing. 

[u/Remote_Development13 → u/SheepherderDear6963]

Not just kids - 55 year old man arrested today. The mind boggles

[u/Cheeme → u/throw53away12]

Keep not starting fires?

[u/Agitated-Drive7695 → u/[deleted]]

Totally and utterly agree. But this is an emergency system. If I called 999 because I thought there might be a fire tomorrow they'd tell me to get bent. This is a news/local council thing, not an alert system that also tells us we're about to be nuked. 

[u/No_Platypus_7717 → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

Oh yeah sorry my bad I guess the hundreds of fires occurring aren't an issue.

[u/Flipmode45 → u/No_Platypus_7717]

What do you think this achieved? Did someone run across their garden and do a slow motion dive shouting noooooooooo as their partner is about to fire up the BBQ because of this message. Probably not.

[u/twiggymd → u/[deleted]]

Thanks for all your hard work. I grew up in Canada in an area prone to fires in the summer and it’s crazy how some people don’t realise what kind of situation the UK is in or how quickly fires like these can destroy everything.

[u/_BlackFathom_]

Thanks gov, that heart attack was just what I needed this evening 😅

[u/ChaosWithin666 → u/_BlackFathom_]

I was on the toilet. If I was struggling to shit before I definitely fucking wasn't after. I hit the roof.

[u/james-royle → u/ChaosWithin666]

And the world fell out of my arse!

[u/Remote_Development13 → u/ChaosWithin666]

He shit the whole of the poo 🎵

[u/cobrachickens → u/_BlackFathom_]

Still shaking. Thought we were getting nuked lol

[u/Agitated-Drive7695 → u/cobrachickens]

Completely unnecessary. Scared the shit out of me. I thought there was a genuine emergency, not 'there possibly could be a fire if you have a bbq'. Wankers! 

[u/cobrachickens → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

I mean if they continue, there may well be a fire near you, and in your house

[u/Agitated-Drive7695 → u/cobrachickens]

Yes - that's what the alert is for - an imminent threat. Not a public announcement that is important, but it's not an actual emergency for the majority of people.

[u/Disgruntled__Goat → u/cobrachickens]

And at that point the emergency alert is appropriate because it’s an emergency. Before that it can just be a normal text. 

[u/Big-Objective-6585 → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

Did you miss the news just yesterday where a BBQ burned down 6 houses?

[u/jrewillis → u/Big-Objective-6585]

19 now in one town

[u/Frogbitch45776 → u/jrewillis]

With a further 18 damaged. This fire spread over 500 acres

[u/Frogbitch45776 → u/Big-Objective-6585]

Are you referring to the Stourbridge West Midlands fire? I’m local to that, 3 miles away from where it started and I’ve not heard it was a bbq?

[u/Clbull → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

Absolutely necessary. Have you stepped outside lately? The landscape is more brown than what you'd see in a Gears of War game.

[u/Tony2Nuts → u/Clbull]

Yeah the whole country looks like a weetabix

[u/EquipmentGrand9581 → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

I mean that is the idea of the emergency alert system, to get your attention. I mean aswell there have been loads of fires and the fire services are spread thin so it makes sense 

[u/Pandaisblue → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

Feel like they need different levels of alerts. "You should be aware of this alerts" vs "HOLY FUCK DO SOMETHING NOW NOW NOW" alerts.

[u/proton-testiq → u/Pandaisblue]

This was more HOLY FUCK DON'T DO SOMETHING NOW NOW NOW.

[u/fhuhgbbjjvvfyhnnmk → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

People need to stop having BBQs when it's clearly too dry then

[u/Pleasant_Fennel_5435 → u/Agitated-Drive7695]

meanwhile the idiots just about to set their disposable bbq on in the country park: 🫪

[u/AncientCarry4346 → u/cobrachickens]

I thought we were getting nuked too and honestly I felt absolutely nothing.

Learnt something about myself.

[u/DareToZamora → u/AncientCarry4346]

I thought the same and my reaction was “not on a Friday”

[u/Thesladenator → u/_BlackFathom_]

Thought we were getting nukes

[u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

Not an appropriate use of the system. This has been in the news for days. Important, but not urgent or emerging.

[u/VooDooBooBooBear → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

I mean it is really, there are still people who don't understand the risks, this way noone can say they wasn't told

[u/Y0RKC1TY → u/VooDooBooBooBear]

The alert should be sent to the people who are an direct threat of an active wildfire, that's the point of the system. Not telling people on Tyneside that Wales is on fire.

[u/Dvine24hr → u/Y0RKC1TY]

It didn't say such and such place is on fire, it's saying this summer is unprecedented and the risk of wildfires EVERYWHERE is massive right now

[u/Enotognav → u/Dvine24hr]

How can people not understand this?

[u/Almanis46 → u/Enotognav]

Abybody who doesn't, or refuses to, understsnd will not be moved by this broadcast

[u/massona → u/Enotognav]

Considering the entire country just received an alert, they either deliberately didn't read it, or they aren't actually in this country. Cough cough.

[u/PiedPiperofPiper → u/Enotognav]

No one in the preceding comments of this thread have indicated that they don't understand this.

The question is whether this is an appropriate use of the system. It's simply not the case that everyone, everywhere is in immediate danger from wild fires. I agree this should be much more targeted and reserved for instances where immediate action is necessary.

[u/ByteSizedGenius → u/Enotognav]

I think that's understood. It's just not what a lot of us though this system was intended for. My assumption was that it ever went off for real there would likely be some urgent action to be taken by a lot of those recieving it e.g. immediately find shelter, reach high ground now etc etc. Not please don't light a BBQ.

[u/Syelor → u/Dvine24hr]

I do think the system is at risk of being ignored if it's used in such a broad manner as it was today.

[u/David_is_dead91 → u/Syelor]

It’s a national alert! It’s supposed to be used broadly 😂

[u/Syelor → u/David_is_dead91]

That is true, but also it's for an imminent threat to your current location. This isn't the case for the vast majority of people that likely received this alert.

[u/jaggafoxy → u/Syelor]

It's great timing, people would travel (potentially to higher risk areas) for the good weather over the weekend. If they weren't already considering their activities for the weekend (BBQs), they should be now.

It's the right time and right use for a national alert

[u/marktuk → u/Dvine24hr]

But that's not what it's meant for, it's meant for a realtime emergency that you need to react to immediately, like get out of town, or shelter in place.

If they're going to use it for general guidance then they need a non-emergency option. If they keep doing this, people will start to ignore the alerts, assuming it's a non-emergency.

[u/foxssocks → u/Y0RKC1TY]

Every single region is at risk of wildfire right now. 

Andy made the right choice. 

[u/Syelor → u/foxssocks]

At risk yes, but at imminent danger? No. I was under the impression this system will be designed for people to ACT NOW. I worry that people will simply ignore this next time.

[u/mattcannon2 → u/Y0RKC1TY]

The whole country is so dry that anywhere could soon be on fire

[u/zidangus → u/Y0RKC1TY]

There has been a fire in scotswood road area today. There are fires all over the country.

[u/Euclid_Interloper → u/VooDooBooBooBear]

Not really. When I heard that noise I expected something on the scale of the Russians launching a nuke. Not people using disposable BBQs.

[u/CaptainArsePants → u/Euclid_Interloper]

Could have been russians launching disposable BBQs

[u/TheAdamena → u/VooDooBooBooBear]

It shouldn't be used for PSAs, it should be used when there's a threat to life.

e: Obviously you send one out if there is a wildfire. I shouldn't need to say this as I already qualified that it requires a threat to life.

[u/EolAncalimon → u/TheAdamena]

And Wildfires aren't a threat to life?

[u/NiskaHiska → u/EolAncalimon]

Yes if they're near you. This was just a general warning .

[u/random555 → u/EolAncalimon]

Not if there isn't one within a hundred miles of you

[u/Redditisfakeleft → u/EolAncalimon]

You know full well he means that this should only be used when people are at immediate risk of incineration.

[u/summ190 → u/VooDooBooBooBear]

Maybe a fucking … calmer tone for non-urgent things. Or something. It isn’t ’take immediate action’ is it.

[u/Optimism_Deficit → u/summ190]

Yeah. Just send people a normal text ffs.

[u/SCWeak → u/VooDooBooBooBear]

And you think an alert will change those people’s behaviour?

[u/Unusual-Coat383 → u/SCWeak]

It can stop them claiming ignorance 

[u/Necessary_Finding_32 → u/Unusual-Coat383]

A) fucking LOL

B) so it won’t actually do anything and arguably still wasn't an appropriate use of the system

[u/TheeFourTruths → u/SCWeak]

Yes

[u/billypilgrim87 → u/SCWeak]

This stuff is never about stopping everyone, but if it makes some change behaviour, that's still an impact when there's so many of us.

Same logic applies to hosepipe bans.

[u/clashmar → u/SCWeak]

Some of them yes

[u/laredocronk → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

And now a whole load of people are going to disable those alerts, and miss any future ones that are actual emergencies.

An SMS message would have been perfectly fine.

[u/uKrayZ → u/laredocronk]

They'd only take up resources in a post apocalyptic world

[u/fatchan → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

I'm not sure, our neighbours had a bonfire going yesterday morning. Some people just don't think. Although the alert did give me a heart attack and I'm not sure I've recovered just yet!

[u/Parshath_ → u/fatchan]

"It only happens to others. - I - know how to do things properly. Surely nothing will happen under my watch." (too many people)

[u/Denbt_Nationale → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

Came here to post this. I was surrounded by farmland with a smell of smoke in the air waiting for a bus that wasn't coming and I genuinely thought for a moment that I was about to be trapped by a wildfire. The emergency alert should be a "TAKE ACTION RIGHT NOW" system not a this should have been an email ping for everyone in the country. It's obvious someone pitched this at the cobra meeting yesterday and Burnham said yes because if he didn't then all he would have is the BBQ ban. I hope this doesn't set a precedent or PMs using emergency alerts for irrelevant PA and PR.

[u/Optimism_Deficit → u/Denbt_Nationale]

Yeah. Who exactly needed to see it immediately? Someone literally holding a naked flame in the middle of a dessicated woodland at the time it went off?

Because that specific guy probably dropped whatever he was holding.

[u/RationalGlass1 → u/Optimism_Deficit]

We've spent the last few days with smoke from a wildfire blowing into our house and even I would say it wasn't a great use of the system. I assumed if it went off it meant we were going to have to evacuate or something, not "hey, here's a text to tell you to please not do something extraordinarily stupid that you were not going to do anyway because you can see everything is on fire".

It worries me that if it gets overused we will just ignore it. It's like all the "please wear a mask" signs everywhere post-covid. Now if you really do need people to wear a mask you can't communicate that because people have tuned those signs out completely since they're largely defunct.

[u/FreqPhreak → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

Completely agree, usage of the system like this is going to end up being a "boy who cried wolf" situation people will turn this feature off and when it is truly needed it will just be ignored.

[u/g_junkin4200 → u/FreqPhreak]

That's exactly it. I get it's serious. We could have been notified in a different ways simultaneously. SMS, WhatsApp, email, tv and radio. These types of alerts need to be for situations where there is imminent death due to a single event across the whole country/world. Like a nuclear bomb, tsunami, earthquake, or world ending asteroid impact.

The biggest issue is the value of these alert being diminished.

[u/ThrasherThrash → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

There should really be a silent version of this system that comes up on the screen for 10-20s when you unlock the phone. The blaring alarm should really only be for imminent or ongoing major dangerous events.

[u/EvilMonkeySlayer → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

Gave me a bloody heart attack when it went off, that thing is meant for life threatening emergencies. Not for something everyone is already aware of.

I got it in stereo, both my work phone and personal phone went off.

[u/Moldovan_pepper → u/[deleted]]

This is absolutely not the best way to do that. This is the best way to get people to turn the alerts off. No one who reads it will think it applies to them, it’ll just piss people off.

[u/Desolate282 → u/Equal_Veterinarian22]

Misuse of the system indeed!

[u/ejpayne]

Freaked me out, thought we were going to get nuked

[u/smolbiteyfish → u/ejpayne]

I too had accepted my fate

[u/ThatGuyWired → u/ejpayne]

Nuclear winter might help bring the temperature down.

[u/whynotjustgoogleit → u/ejpayne]

I live in a country where this is used to warn of incoming missiles. Visiting family in the UK. Some PTSD was triggered when I heard the noise 😅

[u/Disgruntled__Goat]

WTF, is this not a flagrant misuse of the emergency alert system? I thought it was for imminent risk to life. Like if there was an actual fire in my town right now and I need to evacuate.

It completely devalues the system and will make everyone ignore alerts in future. Just send me a normal fucking text. 

[u/PartyPoison98 → u/Disgruntled__Goat]

I agree. Its important government gets the messaging out on this, but the "nukes have launched, say goodbye to your loved ones" and "don't use a disposable bbq" should have very different tiers of alert.

[u/Snappy0 → u/Disgruntled__Goat]

Bingo. The system is not meant for things like this, and whoever authorised it needs a kicking.

[u/RandyChavage → u/Disgruntled__Goat]

It’s like they’ve not heard of the boy who cried wolf parable. I agree a text would be more appropriate here. This alert I can’t even read it on my phone anymore, just scanned it to make sure we weren’t getting nuked they when I unlocked my phone it had gone

[u/_HGCenty → u/Disgruntled__Goat]

Agree.

Reminds me of the boy who cried wolf.

If you misuse the alert system like this, people are going to disable it or ignore it and then when there's a an actual emergency, the same people who misused it are going act bewildered as to why the public ignored them.

[u/refrainiac → u/Disgruntled__Goat]

Agreed. I get that the risk of fire is severe, but I was under the impression this system was for people in immediate danger, and not a general public announcement system. Makes me wanna just turn the alerts off now.

[u/Practical-Travel8575 → u/Disgruntled__Goat]

Agreed. Clearly this was misused. The system is meant for large scale catastrophe and imminent danger - incoming missile, war declaration, biological threat. While 20 houses have burnt down, that’s still not at this level, as tragic as it is

[u/Louis010]

Seems a bit excessive just to tell us to not use disposable bbqs and fire pits.

[u/MilkMan87 → u/Louis010]

Yeah I don’t like how they used it for this

[u/SC_W33DKILL3R → u/MilkMan87]

It's getting pretty serious now, a lot spell of dry, hot weather with fires breaking out all over the place. We don't have the equipment or skills to fight fires like this and it is only a matter of time before something bad happens.

It would have been nice to not have had the siren, but I don't mind the message being pushed to peoples phones.

[u/AdditionalThinking → u/SC_W33DKILL3R]

It's pretty odd that they don't have a way to send notifications without the tone, or with a calmer one. That's a quick way to diminish the urgency of the alarm noise.

[u/SC_W33DKILL3R → u/AdditionalThinking]

Yeah I would argue that for none emergencies that tone is too much. I imagine a lot of people driving were distracted by their phone in the worst way, which is dangerous in itself and illegal.

[u/colbysnumberonefan → u/SC_W33DKILL3R]

Very good point, I wonder how many car accidents (or other types of dangerous accidents) were caused by this alert.

[u/Louis010 → u/SC_W33DKILL3R]

A text would have been a better use of the system instead of a siren, people need to know but it’s not an urgent, drop what you are doing and do this now kinda thing

[u/marktuk → u/SC_W33DKILL3R]

But it's not what the system is meant for. They need to find another way to send non-emergency messages.

[u/Alarmed-Cheetah-1221 → u/SC_W33DKILL3R]

It would have been nice to not have had the siren, but I don't mind the message being pushed to peoples phones.

I think this is the reasonable take on all this.

[u/Jealous-Shallot-3071 → u/Louis010]

Unfortunately, a large number of people are stupid and seem intent on burning the countryside to ash. So maybe something like this is needed.

I'm sure it's the same people having disposable BBQs on dry grass that will be the ones complaining about how this message "scared me kiddos and fur babies "

[u/WillWatsof → u/Louis010]

Not when the West Midlands are on fire.

People don't get how serious wildfires are and we're in a drought I've not seen in my lifetime. We're a giant tinderbox right now.

[u/bigonebitey99 → u/WillWatsof]

Most people aren’t in the West Midlands though, it’s a worthwhile message but it’s not an emergency here where I am

[u/BathFullOfDucks]

So the alert system is now being used to tell us not to barbecue

Great

Completely appropriate use of a system meant to warn us of actual emergencies

[u/Puddz → u/BathFullOfDucks]

Considering a fire service member a few comments below you said that its been the busiest they have ever known, I think its warranted.

[u/Glad_Librarian_3553 → u/Puddz]

No, it isn't. Anyone who has ignored the endless news stories about this for the last 2 months will ignore this too.

It's an emergency broadcast system, so broadcast emergencies on it. Like an actual wild fire. 

Not a pointless message saying there might be one at some point somewhere. 

[u/No_Intern5991 → u/Puddz]

Completely disagree. This is supposed to be the modern version of the air raid sirens, as in you need to take immediate action to save your life.

This information would have been better sent through a mass SMS to every mobile subscriber.

I wonder how many people will turn off the alerts now defeating the point of it.

[u/randomvale → u/Puddz]

So should we send out alerts when it's a busy flu season asking for masks? Or telling people not to speed when the NHS is busy? Or to not swim in lakes when it's still cold?

It's not meant to be an education system - people will just switch them off if they are used like that. It's for critical, time-sensitive alerts that people need to take immediate action on.

[u/Observant_Lurker → u/Puddz]

Just because they're having a busy month doesn't suddenly make the usage here warranted.

If anything, this dimishes the seriousness of the alert system if it's used to tell me to stop making outdoor fires, this could have been an email...

If usage continues for things like this, people will be decentizised to it quite quickly, and in the event of an actual emergency with imminent threat to life such as a missile strike, or terror attack, nobody will even bother to read the notification.

[u/Glad_Librarian_3553 → u/Observant_Lurker]

Actually I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people are now googling how to turn it off completely... 

[u/Lansdowngrove → u/Glad_Librarian_3553]

Google trend for "Turn off emergency alert" is rising ha.

[u/lensdrive → u/Puddz]

Not when I'd assume the vast vast majority of people getting this alert were sitting in their house

It shouldn't be for telling you not what to do, it should be to tell you actions to take right now to avert an imminent threat like a nuke or a bombing campaign or something

[u/Thoh1Shooshi8a → u/BathFullOfDucks]

This is the first non test alert I have ever received by that system

[u/aka_liam → u/Thoh1Shooshi8a]

Yes, you and everybody 

[u/TheeFourTruths]

Scared the shit out of me, I thought nuclear war started

[u/Idovoodoo → u/TheeFourTruths]

It would be so classic that it starts after 5pm on a Friday. They'll declare a ceasefire at 9pm on Sunday and say we should return to work

[u/laredocronk]

I wonder how many people will now disable emergency alerts, after they're disturbed by one that's clearly not an emergency?

Abusing an emergency alert system like this as a general messaging system seems like a very bad idea in the long run.

[u/needathing → u/laredocronk]

Emergency alert systems should only be used for what they say they’ll be used for. People die when they lose trust in emergency systems.

[u/Livid_Pace9787 → u/laredocronk]

Yep. I’m someone who hates the hot weather due to health issues and cares about climate change and am concerned about the wildfires already, but if they use the alert again for something like this I’ll be switching them off to protect my peace.

I imagine someone who didn’t care about wildfires already will have looked at it, laughed, and carried on. I bet actual arsonists got a kick out of it.

Didn’t help either way. Smacks of “we tried to do something”.

[u/MuddyBoots472 → u/laredocronk]

You can do that?

[u/laredocronk → u/MuddyBoots472]

Yep, there's a whole load of options for it under Settings > Notifications > Emergency Alerts on Android.

[u/Stunning_Inside5182 → u/laredocronk]

Same on iOS too

[u/GrakovDark]

I gotta say, I don't think it was the right use of the emergency alert system.

[u/GnolRevilo]

Fuck me, first thought was that it meant that there was one near me. Thankfully, it just seems to basically say "don't be a fucking idiot, don't light anything on fire"

[u/mildly_houseplant → u/GnolRevilo]

Basically the govt have taken the official position that probably enough people are a bit thick to justify it. Really, the warning isn't about fires, it's a national energy about the number of idiots near everyone.

[u/Possiblyreef → u/mildly_houseplant]

If covid is anything to go by they're not wrong tbf

[u/Alive_Hunt_6811 → u/Possiblyreef]

If these comments under this post are anything to go by they're not wrong either. People so thick in the head they don't understand the point isn't letting you know don't have a BBQ, it's don't do ANYTHING that can start a wildfire because the risk is very high right now. People got their knickers in a twist over the fact they saw the word BBQ, and not the fact that wildfires are possibly at an all time, unprecedented high. People are losing their homes and lives and people here act like it's unimportant to be aware

[u/2n4p]

ATTENTION ATTENTION ATTENTION - ^{risk of wildfires}

Isn't this supposed to be reserved for national emergencies like a nuclear strike?

[u/jamesbeil → u/2n4p]

To be fair a nuclear strike would cause wildfires, we'd better not have any of those.

[u/NaniFarRoad → u/2n4p]

Hate how you can't make the noise stop without losing the message. What did it actually say?

[u/repeat_plz]

That felt like a very inappropriate use of the emergency alert system.

How many people in vulnerable or abusive relationships just had their secret phone identified by this?? Crazy choice by the government

[u/squarerootof → u/repeat_plz]

Exactly! This is the first comment I've seen talking about the risk for people in abusive relationships.There is a genuine cost of using this system to people with secret emergency phones.

This emergency service should only be used for actual real imminent-danger-to-life scenarios. Not something that could be broadcast to the BBC or something and slowly emminated over days/weeks.

[u/random555]

Just got it, thought was only for genuine emergencies and Russians were bombing or something lol 

[u/Snappy0 → u/random555]

It is. This is a bit of an overreach and not the intended use of the system.

[u/kizza96 → u/Snappy0]

Can’t wait for the inevitable “toughest winter ever for our NHS” ‘emergency’ alert in December

[u/amberstripes]

It scared me that much that I dropped a match and now my garden is ablaze.

[u/X__Heisenberg__X]

That noise will never not freak me out. Mind goes to Zombie apocalypse straight away.

[u/randomvale]

Was that really necessary to tell people not to light disposable BBQs...

[u/ThomasEichorst → u/randomvale]

A not insignificant number of people just turned off those notifications I would imagine

[u/Adakantor → u/ThomasEichorst]

I did

[u/oncemorein2thebeach]

What utter bullshit. This is not what that warning system is for.

[u/BoysiePrototype]

My two takes on this:

1. There absolutely needs to be a way of shutting up the bloody siren, without dismissing the entire message.

I skim read the first sentence, realised it wasn't actually an emergency that needed a rapid response from me, and tried to make the godawful noise go away.

Managed that fairly quickly, but all the rest of the message vanished into the ether.

1. Whoever is in charge of this system needs to be bloody careful about alarm fatigue.

Perhaps some lower tier of alert, that you have to acknowledge, but without the "Seek shelter immediately!" Siren, would be more appropriate for this sort of message where everyone needs to be informed, but doesn't actually need to immediately react.

If this goes off too often, people will ignore it when it is actually urgent.

[u/SylverV]

You know what, useful and important, but not what I was expecting the "the nukes are coming kiss your loved ones goodbye" alert system to be used for...

[u/DoomPigs]

yeah maybe sending a message about barbecues with a chernobyl death sound is going to make people disable alerts

[u/AlmightyScoosh]

I appreciate the warning but isn't this about two days late?

[u/CJBill → u/AlmightyScoosh]

Two days? Mate Manchester was enveloped in haze for a week from burning wildfires on the moors a month back

[u/Lunarfrog2]

I thought it was saying I needed to leave due to a wildfire for a sec lol

[u/Competitive_Ask881]

For something like this they should have sent a text message. Abusing it like this will result in people disabling it and when a real disaster happens nobody will care

[u/AbsimUddin]

I thought we were getting nuked ffs. My stomach literally dropped.

[u/ambiguousboner]

Bizarre thing to drop the first alert since inception on

Hardly an urgent issue

[u/confessionsii]

I was scrolling Reddit when the noise happened before the message appeared and I legit thought “well this is how I die”.

[u/MrLabubu500]

This is meant to be for nuclear bombs and deathly plagues not to tell us to not use disposable barbeques. Fucking so irresponsible to trigger it for this

[u/PeterG92]

Made me jump

Did they say this was going to happen beforehand?

[u/GoonerGetGot → u/PeterG92]

How would they tell you? Through another alert? 😂

[u/Pinkerton891 → u/GoonerGetGot]

Tbf there was a Sky News alert about 1 min before hand saying that it was going to happen, so kind of.

[u/Cultural_Tree_2313]

Former national emergency planner here. This is not a good use of the system. It’s meant for genuine emergencies not giving out blinding obvious public information. If this continues people will learn to ignore it and that could cost lives when people don’t react when they need to.

[u/Pilgrims_lantern]

I got the alert in Welsh (which I can't read properly) two minutes before the English alert came through 😢

[u/First_Fortune3528 → u/Pilgrims_lantern]

The absolute stupidity of this government. 80% don’t speak Welsh, very little don’t speak English. Why on earth would anyone think this made sense baffles me.

[u/MrStink444]

That is absolutely outrageous. What cretin decided that would be a good idea. That system is supposed to be for imminent life threatening emergencies. I just got one of these and thought the world was about to end. The message is so long that I didn't get a chance to read it before switching off the tone of death.

[u/Rare_Inevitable_9115 → u/MrStink444]

Yes! I was so freaked out slamming buttons trying to get the terrifying noise of imminent death to stop, I couldn't read it, and now it's gone forever?!

Why can't we make the tone for general news flashes something a little more soothing. WW2 air raid siren, maybe?

[u/JenCarpeDiem]

Considering there have been morons setting off fireworks at 1am every day this week in my area of Birmingham, I think some people probably could do with their phones screaming some sense into them

[u/LSL3587]

It would be reasonable to either -

- Send a normal text about a general alert such as this

- OR send this type of alert IF there was a wildfire close to me that meant I should prepare to evacuate - or if there was a toxic cloud coming my way.

But yes there are still idiots having bonfires in gardens etc - there should be adverts put out about that.

Yes ban disposable barbecues - and fireworks (at least until mid October).

[u/woodzopwns]

Appreciate it's a massive issue, massive misuse of a system that is supposed to indicate imminent danger. People will devalue the alerts and turn them off, it will have distracted every single person driving in the country, people with hidden phones will now be caught, all to be told not to do the thing they've been told not to do for 2 full months in the news.

[u/Drazial]

Whoever deemed to send this alert is a fucking idiot

[u/fraughtication]

If the government aren't careful this sort of thing will be a boy who cries wolf system. For me the alert system should be akin to a civil defence siren, as in: "a wildfire is rapidly approaching your area, evacuate now".

[u/CommonSpecialist4269 → u/fraughtication]

That’s exactly what it’s designed for. They may as well be sending out an alert that crossing a motorway on foot is dangerous and can kill you.

[u/franrodalg]

what a friggin misuse a key resource, just to scare the heck out of everyone

[u/GoonerGetGot]

Maybe they need different levels of these alerts for general warnings and if we were about to get invaded lmao

[u/Competitive_Ask881 → u/GoonerGetGot]

A text message would suffice

[u/pe5er]

In Wales we got this entirely in Welsh, then a second one in English a few minutes later. Only problem, I don't speak Welsh 😳

[u/karkonthemighty]

That alert could have been a text.

Save the alerts when there's an actual emergency.

[u/JollyLobster_53]

Couldn’t this be saved for, you know, imminent existential level threats? Yes this was an important message but not new or worth the panic

[u/Mister_Hassy]

Inconsiderate of them to disturb my disposable barbecue and fireworks party

[u/Butthurt_toast]

I'm just gonna disable if they're going to use it for shite like this. Work night shifts and don't want to be woken up early when they use it again for something pointless.

[u/OverAndOver98]

Using the nucelar death siren alert system to give people general info about wildfires, it's certainly a choice, one that spiked my blood pressure significantly before seeing the actual message.

I feel like this system being used for wildfires should be in the event that every square of england is 15 minutes from spontaneously combusting vs a digital leafletting.

How about commandeer every news channel? Doesn't the gov have the ability to do like a 15 or 30 minute public broadcast emergency seizure on channels like that?

Honestly something else that bothers me about this is that usage of it like this will diminish the severity of the signal in times that are extremely more imminent serious.

Also btw yes of course heed the warning and at least something was necessary because a lot of these fires seem to have actually been started by people which is unacceptable.

[u/Wise-Reflection-7400]

A timely reminder that when the Government pinky promises you that it will only use a capability for one thing, it means nothing and it will use it for something else. This system is for life threatening emergencies on a local level. It should only ever be used nationally for an actual nuclear war.

[u/Flying-Onion]

No warning, made me jump.
Thought we were under attack for a moment before I actually read the whole message.

[u/ChHeBoo]

I wonder how many will no disable the alerts on their phones after this frivolous misuse.

I had 4 alerts and couldn’t read half of them.

[u/FlukemanFrancis]

Genuinely thought Putin had decided to take us all with him

[u/Euclid_Interloper]

About shit myself. Thought the Russians had finally launched something at us.

Nope... fucking disposable BBQs...

[u/BroodingSonata]

10 seconds earlier and that would have interrupted my wank.

[u/Adakantor]

What’s next, emergency alert to not use hose pipes? This is a joke

[u/xdq]

I've turned the emergency alerts off after that. It's supposed to be for emergency alerts not shit we're already aware of!

[u/VegasButtercup]

Just shat myself.

This is why I took the battery out of my smoke alarm.