The siren test runs from 1.30pm to 4.30 pm. It includes the general alarm, which is a one-minute wailing tone, and the water alarm in areas below dams, which consists of twelve low tones, each lasting 20 seconds. In 2024, 99% of the sirens worked perfectly. Each canton will also send out a message via Alertswiss.
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An eye-opening guide to Switzerland’s ear-splitting sirens
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Every year, on the first Wednesday in February, the sound of 7,200 sirens fills the Alpine air, startling anyone who doesn’t know it’s a test.
The Federal Office for Civil Protection is urging people to build up their own emergency supplies. The Federal Office for National Economic Supply emergency stockpile calculatorExternal link can be used to check and calculate one’s stockpile. A revised version of the related brochure will be available in mid-February.
Translated from German with DeepL/sp
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