The Creation of the EAS

The EAS (Emergency Alert System) is used to warn people of severe weather and civil defence emergencies. On January 1, 1997, the EAS was released and tested. The EAS is known to many to be disturbing, and even downright terrifying! But it is true that those seemingly random screeches are broadcasting codes and attention getters. The EAS was first used only to broadcast messages of WW2 attacks, but is now used for peacetime emergencies, like tornadoes and nuclear emergencies. The EAS is very important because tornadoes are fast and unpredictable and without warnings, we wouldn’t know when a tornado is coming. Many people rely on the warnings to tell them when a tornado is coming. ​​​​​​​

A long, repeating note, or alert tone, was emitted from these sirens to indicate tornado warnings, while an oscillating frequency, or wail, was used to indicate a civil defence emergency. The Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) replaced the CONELRAD system in 1963, primarily as a system for warning the public of enemy attack. However, some local governments later began to use the EBS for disseminating tornado warnings through television and radio stations. When wireless broadcasting was invented, the EBS no longer worked, so the government invented the EAS. Thus bringing tornado death tolls down by hundreds.