On Thu, 4 Oct 2018, b...@theworld.com wrote:
Just to try to squeeze something worthwhile out of these reports...
I wonder, if there were a real alert, what the odds are that one
wouldn't hear about it in 1 minute, 5 minutes, etc even if they didn't
personally get it.
What happens when people don't get warnings?
Gatlinburg, TN - 2016 Wildfires - 14 fatalities
Northern California - 2017 Wildfires - 44 fatalities
Yes, neighbors alerted neighbors, local emergency officials drove through
the streets and knocked on doors, radio and television stations broke into
programming. It took hours, and eventually about 200,000 people were
warned. But the wildfires moved faster than those other alerting methods.
Sometimes people are asleep (disasters don't always happen at 2pm on a
work day), live alone, are not constantly watching TV or checking social
media.
Its unlikely any system will ever be able to reach everyone. WEA reaches
more people (about 70% of the national population), much faster (about
10-15 seconds), day and night (most people keep their mobile phones near
them even while sleeping) than the existing warning systems. But they
should still be used in combination, not exclusive.
Warning systems depend on communication service providers keeping their
systems operating, i.e. cell towers with backup power, ISPs with
diversity in their networks, etc.