Emergency sirens test shows Romania needs integrated warning system

Romania needs an integrated alert system, allowing the warning of a large number of citizens, said lieutenant colonel Cristian Radu first deputy inspector at the Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations (IGSU), quoted by Agerpres. The statement was made in reference to last week’s “emergency sirens test,” when officials found a 48% audibility degree of the total number of warning and alarm equipment. During last week’s test, 6,045 sirens were functional, while 635 were not. The IGSU representative also argued in favor of an increased number of warning equipment and of alternative ways of delivering messages to the population. At the same time, Raed Arafat, a state secretary with the Domestic Affairs Minister, said the country lacks an efficient population warning system, one of the problems being the activation of sirens. “We cannot say we have an efficient warning system. At a local level there were some difficulties with starting the sirens, mostly because of the human factor. It is very important to centralize the command of sirens. We tried alternative solutions, one of them being the department's application. It works but its reach is limited at the moment,” Arafat said. For four days last week, emergency sirens were tested alternatively in Bucharest and all the counties in Romania. How well are the Romanian authorities prepared to handle a big earthquake? editor@romania-insider.com