Local emergency officials will test the tsunami communications system on Wednesday. Courtesy of Del Norte Office of Emergency Services

If you’re hanging around Downtown Crescent City between 11 a.m. and noon on Wednesday and hear sirens, don’t freak out — it’s part of Tsunami Preparedness Week.

The annual test of the tsunami warning communications system in Del Norte, Humboldt and Mendocino counties may interrupt television and radio broadcasts on Wednesday. NOAA weather radios will be activated, and folks outside may hear and see a Civil Air Patrol airplane testing its public address system.

Del Norters signed up for the Community Alert System may also receive a text message, phone call or email notifying them about the test. Though they don’t need to call 911, emergency preparedness officials are urging the public to provide feedback.

“We’re looking for response to our Everbridge alert system,” Maia Mello, Del Norte’s new emergency services manager, told the Wild Rivers Outpost. “It allows people to say, ‘Yes, I got this message.’ It will give us some data as to how long it took to receive the message.”

The public can also provide feedback via the Del Norte Office of Emergency Facebook page, its website, PrepareDelNorte.com, as well as by calling (707) 464-7255.

With three counties testing their alert systems at the same time, Mello said emergency preparedness officials especially want to find out if the system will get bogged down.

Meanwhile, though National Weather Service personnel will trip the sirens remotely, Del Norte Office of Emergency Services volunteers will be stationed near them to determine whether they were activated, Mello said.

But, while the sirens are part of Wednesday’s test, not everyone will hear them, she said.

“The purpose of tsunami sirens is to alert people on the beaches, so it’s not something that you’re necessarily supposed to count on if you’re a mile away,” Mello said. “Tsunami sirens are good for distant source tsunamis, when we have time and we know it’s coming. In the event of a felt earthquake, that is your tsunami siren.”

According to Mello, four sirens are located in Crescent City, near the harbor and downtown area. Two are in Smith River and six are in Klamath. Caltrans will provide electronic signs notifying people of the test.

While Wednesday’s event is a test of the communications system, Mello noted that if there were a distant-source tsunami, people would be going door to door urging those living in local inundation areas to evacuate. She said she hopes to do a full scale evacuation drill soon.

The test of the tsunami alert system will be cancelled if a real tsunami watch, warning or advisory occurs or if an earthquake occurs, according to Mello.

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