Government emergency alarm

[diy_fun_uk]

Humour me here, as I have no interest / idea how it actually could work.

Say someone is spotted with a gun, sword, crossbow, whatever. And a 999 call goes in.
Just happens to be right next to a mobile phone mast.
Could the emergency beacon be set only for that mast, alerting only those within the twenty or so mile range?

I suppose it theoretically could work like that, however it surely has the potential to create more panic/mayhem than it solves? I reckon (maybe wrongly) it'll only be used for larger scale incidents.

 

[blup]

Humour me here, as I have no interest / idea how it actually could work.

Say someone is spotted with a gun, sword, crossbow, whatever. And a 999 call goes in.
Just happens to be right next to a mobile phone mast.
Could the emergency beacon be set only for that mast, alerting only those within the twenty or so mile range?

Well it doesn't work from the feedback on this post. Plus the elderly vulnerable poor, imprisoned, motorists often don't have access to or own a phone. As for the example about someone with a dangerous weapon, alerting people would sew confusion plus the emergency services wouldnt intervene under health and safety grounds. It is almost impossible to imagine a scenario where it would help at all, other give some business continuity dork an important decision to make. Think about the declaration of major incidents, they happen so often in the nhs for example that people don't give them weight. That can only happen with the national alarm.

Blup

 

[Brigadier]

That can only happen with the national alarm.

And if it's a national level event, probably little we as individuals could do anyway.

All in all then, a bit pointless.

 

[Tigercubrider]

It is able to be targeted at specific zones.
For example theLondon Brieve attacks - it could have been used to tell every business to bring customers indoors and lock up.
It has been planned since 2013. But the technology 4G/5G makes it easier.

 

[pcaouolte]

And if it's a national level event, probably little we as individuals could do anyway.

All in all then, a bit pointless.

It works at cell tower level. One or more cell towers in an area can send an alert specific to that area.

 

[Brigadier]

. But the technology 4G/5G makes it easier

If you can get a signal

Fudge me: I get no signal on the way from work, and that's only seven miles from the centre of brum.
Same in my local.
Hardly out there tagging sumartran three - toed sloths.....

 

[gas112]

fekme if that pathetic wee noise from the phone is meant to alert you and getting you springing into action think they need to rethink it

 

[blup]

It is able to be targeted at specific zones.
For example theLondon Brieve attacks - it could have been used to tell every business to bring customers indoors and lock up.
It has been planned since 2013. But the technology 4G/5G makes it easier.

It worse than I thought, how can the public possibly be safe if security and policing is delegated to businesses, quite apart from system hacking.

Blup

 

[Mottie]

Apparently some customers on the 'Three' network didn’t get the alert. Mrs Mottie and I are on the I.D. MVNO which piggybacks on the Three network and we never got any alerts. Any others on here on other networks that didn’t get it?

 

[securespark]

Any predictions?

A very annoyed vile Russian?

 

[DiyNutJob]

How does an alarm help in any conceivable circumstances, like a nuclear bomb about to explode

Useful for saying goodbyes. Always handy if you want to fight two super powers simultaneously.

 

[JohnD]

What is the point? How does an alarm help in any conceivable circumstances, like a nuclear bomb about to explode, or flooding, fire, terrorism.

Public health, and public safety, are a numbers game.

If, say, 80% of the population were going to die from, say, a hailstorm of flaming meteors, and you warned everybody to take cover, you might save 10% or more of the population. Worth doing.

Mass screening for cancer, TB, Covid, Syphilis didn't have to save everybody to be worthwhile. If there are a lot of cases, and you find half of them, or even a tenth, in time to save them, it's worthwhile. The same with vaccinations. If you could prevent a thousand deaths, you'd want to try. If you had a million children crippled with rickets, you'd give free school milk to all children, even the ones who were not at risk, just to get blanket coverage.

The cost of a cell broadcast to ten million people is not high.

 

[ellal]

Chicken Licken?

 

[JohnD]

There are a few places that already have public alert systems.

For example if you live near a place where a number of homicidal maniacs are incarcerated, or a place where nuclear weapons might be present, there is a chance you might be told to go inside and lock the doors, or take cover, in the event of an incident. Tests and exercises may be carried out periodically.

 

[Dork Lard]

Imagine a scenario where NASA spots an asteroid on a collision course & all life on earth will be wiped out in 24 hours.

DO YOU THINK THEY WOULD TELL US?

I don't know what this nonsense is all about because no one can predict the future. But I know it is nonsense & I know it will be used in the future for nonsense reasons.