The Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) was replaced by the Emergency Alert System (EAS) on January 1, 1997. The EAS provides a digital burst of information that includes exact locations and the type of emergency. EAS information is carried over the NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) network.
The special encoding of location and type is decoded by special receivers called SPECIFIC AREA MESSAGE ENCODER, or SAME. NOAA Weather Radios can be purchased that have SAME, and will alarm only if the emergency is in your county and is of the type that you have programmed to be received.
If you are in the Northland and want to have the EAS alert on your NOAA weather radio, click here for the Northland SAME codes.
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