Tsunami Siren Emergency Testing Set for Wednesday, March 26

 

The Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency (VITEMA) will conduct a territorywide test of the Tsunami Early Warning System, as part of the annual CARIBE WAVE/LANTEX 14, a Caribbean and Northwestern Atlantic Tsunami Warning Exercise.

Between 10 and 10:15 a.m. on Wednesday, March 26, VITEMA will activate tsunami sirens on St. Croix, St. John and St. Thomas to transmit a tsunami warning message followed by a warning tone. No other messages will follow the tsunami warning alert.

“VITEMA’s objective is to validate that the tsunami warning sirens are operational and can seamlessly activate once triggered by the 911 Emergency Communications Center in St. Croix and in St. Thomas,” said Elton Lewis, VITEMA Director. “This early warning system is a critical public information tool for notifying coastal communities of an imminent threat of tsunami, especially in instances where there may be little time to act.

The test is being conducted as part of a Caribbean-wide tsunami exercise and no action is required on the part of the general public.”