NL Alert system tested at noon

The Dutch authorities tested the NL Alert, the national warning system, at noon on Monday. The notification, accompanied by a piercing sound, popped up on all mobile phones connected to a mobile network in the Netherlands.

The warning system is generally used to warn people in a wider area of an emergency, like a dangerous storm or large fire. The authorities test the system twice a year - on the first Mondays in June and December. The previous test was on June 5.

Anyone with their phone turned on and connected to a mobile network in the Netherlands should receive the alert. If you didn’t receive the test message, it might be because your phone was turned off, in airplane mode, or an older model connected to older mobile networks. In the past, people in border areas connected to Belgian or German cell towers have also missed the message.

Anyone with an Apple iPhone can ensure their phones are configured by navigating to Settings, then Notifications, and checking if "Emergency Notifications" are enabled. Android users can activate notifications of "Extreme Alerts" by navigating to Settings, then Emergency Alerts.