Thread by @RogueEPAstaff

THREAD: You guys. It’s time to have a family talk.

Here’s why everybody needs to stop freaking the fuck out over this NBC “President Trump is about to text us” story.

The president is vested with the power, under the Communications Act of 1934, to alert and warn the public in times of war or national emergency.

In 2006, Congress realized that cell phone technology could be used to create a wider reach for the emergency alert system that, at that point, was only on tv and radio.

Congress passed the WARN Act to create a Wireless Emergency Alert system. Local alerts (severe weather and missing children) are sent out by local governments. National alerts (nuke/rad, coordinated terrorist event) can only be sent out as presidential alerts.

In other words, if North Korea decides to nuke San Francisco (sorry, Giants!), the White House can send an alert and hopefully save some lives.

Thankfully the federal government hasn’t ever had to send a national alert yet.

But the system still has to be tested.

Locally and regionally the system is tested all the time. But this is the first national test of the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) System.

The national test will use the same special tone and vibration you’re used to hearing with local WEA messages.

And who is sending it? Career staff in FEMA’s operation center. These are the people that got our backs. Please stop freaking the fuck out.

There’s a hurricane - people need our help. Go donate blood. Send money to a trusted charity. Volunteer through nvoad.org.

And go hug someone you love, cuz there’s plenty of angst in the world and we all know someone in need of some TLC.