Civil Protection

IT-Alert, today test in Sardinia: simulated tidal wave

The appointment is at 11 a.m. and will affect areas in the province of Nuoro, in the municipalities of Orosei, Siniscola and Posada

by Davide Madeddu

15 May 2024

3' min read

Key points

Simulation in Orosei, Siniscola and Posada
It-alert information
Coastal Map

3' min read

The hypothesised scenario is that of a tidal wave caused by an earthquake. This is the hypothesis of the exercise scheduled Wednesday 15 May in the central-eastern coast of Sardinia as part of the exercises planned by the public-alert-system, the tool for direct information to the population that broadcasts to mobile phones in a given geographical area messages useful in case of imminent or ongoing serious emergencies or disasters. The IT-Alert message, once transmitted, is received by anyone who is in the area affected by the emergency and has a mobile phone switched on and hooked up to the telephone cells.

Simulation in Orosei, Siniscola and Posada

The appointment is at 11 a.m. and will affect areas in the province of Nuoro, in the municipalities of Orosei, Siniscola, and Posada. The hypothesis is that of a tidal wave, i.e. 'a series of sea waves produced by the rapid displacement of a large mass of water originating from a strong earthquake with epicentre at sea or near the coast'.

On the telephones of the inhabitants of the areas affected by the drill, the message 'Test Test Message IT-Alert. A SIMULATION of an earthquake-generated tsunami is being carried out in the area where you are. To find out what message you will receive in case of real danger and to fill in the questionnaire go to www.it-alert.gov.it Test Test'.

The information on the It-alert site

Not only that, for today from the homepage of the dedicated site it will be possible to access a page where it will be possible to see the text of the message that would arrive in the event of real danger and the link www.it-alert.gov.it to the questionnaire that citizens in the areas involved are invited to fill in, even if they do not receive any notification. The test message will arrive on the switched-on and connected mobile phones of those in the target areas.

Coastal map

For the Italian coasts, according to the estimated severity of the seaquake, the system provides two levels of alert, orange and red. The coastal zones to be evacuated in case of an orange or red alert are defined in the inundation maps drawn up by Ispra, in which the orange alert level is associated with warning zone 1 while the red alert level is associated with warning zone 2.

The IT-alert message is sent in warning zone 2 and is issued in the case of a red and orange alert and in the case of revocation, i.e. when the seismic event assessed as potentially triggering a tsunami has not actually occurred.

In case of real danger

In the event of real danger from an earthquake-generated seaquake, as is stressed on the institutional website, mobile phones in alert zone 2 will receive an IT-Alert message with the words "Civil Protection Alert DD/MM/YY 00:00 - Possible MAREMOTO waves for earthquake with epicentre in [Country (if abroad) or province of (if in Italy)]. Move away from the sea and quickly reach an elevated area. If you are in a boat, stay away from the coast. Keep up to date and follow the instructions of the authorities'.

If no tidal wave was generated as a result of the earthquake, mobile phones in alert zone 2 will receive an IT-alert message stating: 'Civil Protection Alert DD/MM/YY 00:00 - Tidal wave alert lifted'.