The sirens wail all over Germany: That is the background

At 11 a.m. on Thursday, September 10, 2020, the sirens will wail in Germany - for the first time in decades.

All information about the big test alarm at a glance.

• On Thursday at 11.00 a.m. the

  sirens will

  wail

  all over Germany

  - we will clarify the most important questions.

• A

  nationwide warning

  day will

  take place for the first time in 30 years on

  September

  10, 2020

  .

• In order to spread knowledge and safety in dangerous situations, there will be a large-scale test alarm from sirens, radio, warning apps and the like.

Frankfurt - On Thursday,

it will be loud in Germany: the sirens will wail, warning apps will be triggered, loudspeaker trucks will roll through the streets, radio and television will interrupt their programs.

Do you know what to do now?

The

on Thursday is intended to achieve exactly that: In an emergency, everyone knows what a warning tone means and what needs to be done now.

It is intended to strengthen acceptance and knowledge about the warning system in Germany and thus increase the self-protection of the population.

And to do this, the authorities open up a whole arsenal of warning channels - from the well-known sirens to modern warning apps.

This Thursday everything is to be put to the test across Germany for the first time.

Precisely at

, the so-called warning devices are triggered simultaneously in all 16 federal states, in the districts and in the municipalities with a test alarm.

At

, the signal to give the all-clear follows.

We answer the most important questions about

.

Siren alarm throughout Germany: That is the background

1. How does the nationwide test alarm work on warning day 2020?

The

will be sent on Thursday (10.09.2020) to the so-called warning multipliers, which 

 are connected to the federal

.

After all, warning messages should be distributed in as many ways as possible in order to reach as large a section of the population as possible - ideally, of course, everyone.

This warning is then transmitted via satellite to the various communication channels such as radio and television stations, online media in daily newspapers or warning apps - for example the NINA app - and passed on to the population.

The satellite transmission is largely interference-free and also works in the event of a power failure, for example.

The local authorities decide which warning devices are used in the individual countries and districts, so there may be local differences.

+

Logo for the nationwide warning day 2020 on September 10th at 11.00 am: "We warn Germany"

© Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance

The Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Aid (BBK) has summarized on the website "Warning of the Population" in an interactive map who is responsible for the Thursday warning in each country and what the various warning concepts can look like.

Howling sirens in Frankfurt: Nationwide warning day 2020

2. What does the 2020 warning day mean for Germany?

In

, the

for the Höchst and Alessa industrial parks in Fechenheim

sound

.

In the past, companies have carried out their own test alarms twice a year, with a slightly different siren sequence.

On Thursday and in the future they will join the nationwide warning day and the associated warning rhythm.

In a press release, the city and the Frankfurt fire brigade

draw

particular attention to the

: "Everyone in Frankfurt who has NINA, KATWARN, Hessenwarn or BIWAPP installed on their smartphone will receive the test warning from the BBK on Thursday - and 20 Minutes later the test all-clear.

It is important to have an updated warning app at all. "

Warning day 2020: why do the sirens wail?

3. How do the sirens sound on the warning day?

The alarm on

from an estimated 40,000 in the country sirens will sound, is a

be

The sound will swell up and down indicating an imminent 

.

The main aim of the siren signals is that citizens are made aware of a special situation by the howling sound of the sirens and, above all, are woken from sleep when the radio, television and mobile phones are off.

Sirens can only announce

there is

imminent

danger, but not

.

The additional complex warning system consisting of radio, loudspeaker announcements, warning apps and the like then provides specific information about the emergency and tips on what you can do to protect yourself.

"In general, keep calm, find out about the media and, if necessary, inform your neighbors," said the BBK.

A

then means that there is no longer any acute danger.

This should sound on the warning day 2020 at 11.20 a.m.

Warning day 2020: Successful population warning

In order to successfully warn the population, according to expert opinions, various aspects must interact: A wake-up and information function.

The sirens perform the

: They are ready for use 24 hours a day and indicate that there is an acute danger.

So that the warning actually fulfills its purpose, everyone has to know that the signal indicates a danger and that one should obtain specific information about the danger in other ways.

Check out this post on Instagram

A post shared by FFW Nentershausen (@feuerwehr_nentershausen) on Sep 8, 2020 at 3:01 am PDT

Howling sirens in Germany: That is the background

4. What should the 2020 warning day bring?

Why all the hassle if such a large test alarm has not occurred since the reunification in 1990?

"It has been shown that people in crisis situations mainly fall back on what they know and what they have already learned," says Christoph Unger, President of the

,

towards the news agency "dpa".

That is why it makes sense to practice something like this.

On a smaller scale, test alarms are nothing unknown.

For example, in the Allessa chemical plant in

Fechenheim, the

tested

at regular intervals

during a test alarm *.

And just like local test alarms, the

on Thursday is intended to help make the warning channels and siren tones known so that citizens are familiar with the warning in an emergency and know what to do after a warning.

In addition to being of great importance for citizens, the test alarm on Thursday is also an important test run for the responsible authorities: For example, it will show whether the sirens, which have not been used in many places for years, are still working properly and whether the system is being repaired in various places got to.

Major alarm in Frankfurt: why do the sirens wail?

5. Why is the nationwide warning day on September 10th?

The reasons for the large-scale test alarm on Thursday seem logical, but why is it exactly on September 10th?

109 does not remind of warning or disaster control, as was the case, for example, with the Twitter thunderstorm of the professional fire departments * on February 11th.

The date (

) shows why the day was chosen for the action.

The Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief (BBK) explains the selection of the day quite simply: In most of the country there is school again, so you can assume that you will reach as many people as possible.

On 09/10

the # Warntag2020 takes place!

What makes this test alarm so important?

Whether it is a power failure, a natural hazard or an accident in a chemical plant: an efficient warning process helps you to react quickly and correctly.

Learn more at https://t.co/OVWEi5rM5e!

^ sg pic.twitter.com/djdgYWBhHQ

- BBK (@BBK_Bund) September 7, 2020

Warning day 2020: terrorist attacks, natural disasters, chemical accidents or pandemics

6. What dangers are warned about in an emergency?

During the Cold War, such

,

Germany-wide test alarms like the one taking place on Thursday (September 10th, 2020), were carried out twice a year.

After the end of the East-West conflict, however, these were no longer considered necessary and discontinued. "No further need", it was said. Over the years, however, new dangers replaced the military threat from Eastern Europe: terrorist attacks, natural disasters, chemical accidents or pandemics are part of it.

Natural events such as the 

in 2018 and 2019, floods, but also threats from, for example, terrorist attacks such as in Halle and Hanau as well as the 

*,

have

 recently increased

the importance of the 

again.

Nationwide, the authorities use the federal modular warning system to warn of various dangers and scenarios:

• Natural hazards

  such as floods or earthquakes

• Severe weather

  , such as severe storms, thunderstorms or heat waves

• Leakage of pollutants

  or general accidents in chemical plants

• Failure of the supply

  (e.g. electricity, water, telecommunications)

• Pathogens

• Major fires

• Gun violence and attacks

  (terrorist threats)

• Other

  acute dangers

  , such as bomb defuses, where evacuations are necessary

Sirens, warning apps, radio: the nationwide warning day

7. Who warns of the dangers?

The nationwide Warning Day 2020 should therefore not remain a one-off event.

By resolution of the

of Interior Ministers, the

in future always take place on the second Thursday in September.

Christoph Unger, President of the BBK, has also announced further measures to spread knowledge about warnings and the right behavior in emergencies among the population: "As part of further awareness-raising campaigns and actions, behavioral instructions should also be given in the event of danger."

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Warning day 2020: Citizens also receive notifications of dangerous situations via warning apps such as “NINA” or “KatWarn”. 

© Rolf Vennenbernd / dpa

The 

on Thursday, September 10th

is organized by the federal and state governments.

The BBK and the interior ministries of the federal states are responsible for the warnings.

At the municipal level, then the authorities responsible for disaster control.

List of rubric lists: © Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Aid