Monthly emergency siren tests continue despite coronavirus measures

The coronavirus crisis in the Netherlands doesn't mean the government forgot to do its monthly test of the emergency sirens. The sirens are always tested at noon on the first Monday of the month, and that also happened today.

The monthly tests of the sirens are only skipped on national holidays, on Remembrance Day, and on religious holidays. That means that the sirens won't be tested in May and June. The first Monday in May, May 4th, is Remembrance Day. And the first Monday in June, June 1st, is Whit Monday.

The air horns were to be replaced by the NL Alert system, with Netherlands residents receiving emergency updates on their phones. But for the time being, the government still provided budget to continue maintaining the sirens.