[LINK] Canberra Emergency Warnings About Factory Fire

[Ash Nallawalla]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: link-bounces at mailman.anu.edu.au [mailto:link-
> bounces at mailman.anu.edu.au] On Behalf Of Tom Worthington
> Sent: Saturday, 17 September 2011 10:07
> To: link at mailman.anu.edu.au
> Subject: Re: [LINK] Canberra Emergency Warnings About Factory Fire
> 
> On 16/09/11 08:37, Alex (Maxious) Sadleir wrote:
> > I got the test message a while back but not today. Perhaps they are
> > using a list of subscribers and a commercial SMS gateway ...
> 
> Yes. This is an Australia wide system called "Emergency Alert":
> http://www.emergencyalert.gov.au/
> 
> It uses the subscribers billing address and sends a voice message for
landlines
> and SMS for mobile phones. Both my home and billing addresses for the
> mobile phone are within the area for the Canberra fire emergency, but I
> received no message.

In the early 80s I experienced the EBS via TV in the US:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_Broadcast_System I saw it many times,
possibly on different TV channels. This November I will be in the US during
a planned test of the EAS, which replaced the EBS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_Alert_System. I have a US mobile, so
I expect it will get the message.

> I suggested using Cell Broadcast in Australia, but there are some
technical
> problems with it:
> http://www.tomw.net.au/technology/it/bushfire_warning_system/

I have been at the office when the Victorian test SMSs were sent and most of
us got them within a minute or two of each other, but I agree that the cell
broadcast method would be better.  Is every link in that path guaranteed to
have backup electricity for a few minutes?

Ash