From February, you will receive notifications about dangers such as landslides, terrorism and nuclear incidents directly on your mobile phone. – It is an important tool for reaching out quickly with information, says Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp). The emergency alert is a supplement to the Civil Defence’s siren system and the notification routines for the police. – It can also mean giving notice that the danger is over, or that something that seems very frightening in the media image or on social media is in reality not a danger, says Mehl. She has previously explained that a push notification (not an SMS) will appear for everyone who has a mobile phone. – There is also a backup solution, so that if Telenor were to fail, for example, those who have Telenor will still receive the notification, she clarified. The government simultaneously announces that the “next step” is to put in place a system whereby the police can send out local and regional emergency alerts. Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) demonstrates the use of a mobile phone. Photo: Fredrik Johan Helland / news Increased support after the war in Ukraine Due to the war in Ukraine, the government decided in October to increase financial support for several measures to strengthen preparedness in Norway. One of the measures was an emergency alert on the phone. – There is a lot of important work that has gone into establishing this system in a few months, says director Elisabeth Aarsæther of DSB in a press release. Norway has been working towards getting a mobile notification system in place for several years. In 2017, the Directorate for Community Safety and Emergency Preparedness (DSB) was commissioned by the Ministry of Justice to investigate how a mobile notification system could supplement the siren alerts. The siren warning consists of 1,250 howling typhoons (or “aircraft alarms”) that are located around the country. There is broad agreement that this system does not cover those who live outside the coverage area, or for those who are hard of hearing. During the first half of 2023, the police will also be able to send out local and regional emergency alerts. Photo: Allan Klo / news Welcome the system – I think a new system sounds very good, if it warns that stretches of road will be closed due to the risk of landslides, says Tore Tonning. He and his wife Sigrid Schulz were not notified when the road through the area they live in was closed during several large landslides in Jølster a few years ago. One person died in the landslide. Afterwards, the married couple send a letter to the ministry to speed up the introduction of mobile notification. – It is important that everyone is notified as early as possible. That was not the case in 2019. Then we did not know that the road was closed, and that led to the wife driving on the closed road from where we live. Tore Tonning and Sigrid Schultz send a letter to the Minister of Social Security in 2019 to speed up the introduction of mobile alerts. Photo: Oddleif Løset – A good addition Former High Mayor Sven Flo, in Stryn experienced several cases of bad weather when he sat with the mayor’s chain. – I think this is a good contribution to national preparedness, he says. He adds that it is still not enough to rely on such a notification. In crisis situations, there is a chance that the network will not work. It happened during the storm Dagmar in 2011, which devastated Stryn, among other places. – It is a good addition to inform the citizen, but we must have a backup of the flow of information out to the citizen. Police contact in the Nordhordland sheriff’s district, Jan-Terje Brügger, says it is desirable to get out early with good and reliable information to people. – If such a system that has now been launched can help us to do that, the police are of course positive about it, he says.
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The government establishes emergency notification on mobile – news Vestland
