2 minutes early? Americans react to emergency alert test with tweets, jokes, fake warnings

C. A. Bridges and Jennifer Sangalang, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
·5 min read
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After days of buildup and tips on when it was coming, what it meant and how to stop it, the Nationwide Emergency Alert Test sounded on phones across the land.

Two minutes earlier than scheduled. And Americans were quick to point it out. Often.

A national alert was sent at 2:18 p.m. ET Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023, to devices across the U.S. Its message? “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert System. The purpose is to maintain and improve alert and warning capabilities at the federal, state, local, tribal and territorial levels and to evaluate the nation's public alert and warning capabilities. No action is required by the public."

Previous reporting was meant to inform readers that the emergency test alert would happen at 2:20 p.m. ET Wednesday, Oct. 4.

Though the message was sent only once and lasted for about a minute, after the nationwide test, social media users shared screengrabs of their homescreens, what they were doing and how the test affected them. Here's a compilation of tweets and photos about the #NationalAlert and #emergencytestalert from Twitter.

Interviews with Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans and Washington Wizards' Jordan Poole were interrupted

For most, the emergency test alert was just startling

And some people seemingly got a different emergency test alert than we did

And, of course, the zombification began after the national alert system test

Since #emergencytestalert and #NationalAlert have been trending, some companies joined in on the buzz topic

After the 2:18 p.m. Oct. 4, 2023, nationwide emergency test alert, other apps joined in on the emergency test topic.
After the 2:18 p.m. Oct. 4, 2023, nationwide emergency test alert, other apps joined in on the emergency test topic.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Emergency alert at 2:18 Wednesday. Best photos from Twitter, social