Nationwide major alarm tomorrow: Traditional Munich company tests new warning system

Created: 07/12/2022 09:14

By: Nadja Hoffmann

Major alarm on Thursday: screens on buses and trains provide information.

© Felix Hörhager/dpa

Nationwide major alarm on Thursday: Screens on buses and trains will also provide information.

A traditional Munich company becomes a warning multiplier.

Munich - Don't be alarmed when the alarm goes off at 11 a.m. sharp tomorrow, December 8: On the nationwide warning day, the authorities are testing their emergency call systems, which are used in the event of a disaster.

For example, in the event of a flood or a major fire.

In some places there will be howls.

In Munich, however, where there have been no sirens since the Second World War, the alarm system works differently.

The city's warning system consists of several pillars: In the event of a disaster, residents of Munich are alerted via radio, the mobile phone apps Katwarn and Nina, cell broadcast messages to their mobile phones and loudspeaker announcements directly on the street.

And from now on, the district administration department (KVR) and the fire department can access the many digital information screens that are available in underground stations, on platforms and bus stops throughout the city.

Warning day on December 8th in Munich - "Communication is extremely important in crises"

A new cooperation with the advertising material company Ströer makes it possible.

“Communication is extremely important in crises.

It has to be quick and clear," said KVR boss Hanna Sammüller-Gradl when presenting the collaboration.

And: The warnings should be noticed by as many citizens as possible in the city.

One million people use local public transport every day - they can now be reached easily, directly and understandably.

As Ströer Managing Director Alexander Stotz explained, the fire brigade and police can trigger three different warning levels.

Traditional Munich company fades warning message on screens

A warning message can be packed into the booked sequence of commercials, for example.

The authorities can also interrupt the program completely.

Then only the alarm info can be seen on the screens.

This is how Ströer – the company was founded in Munich 100 years ago – becomes a warning multiplier.

Stotz: "Today is a big day for us."

The plans for the cooperation have existed since 2018, as fire brigade chief Wolfgang Schäuble explains. On the warning day on Thursday (December 8), the emergency will be rehearsed for the first time at 11 a.m. with this system.

According to Schäuble, it is an "extension of the existing possibilities".

Meanwhile, the mask requirement in public transport in Bavaria will fall at the weekend.

This was decided by the ministers at the cabinet meeting.

The reactions on the net follow promptly.