‘What just happened?’: Internet reacts as emergency alert system test sends loud beep to mobile users

Several mobile phone users were left startled on Saturday morning after their devices suddenly rang with a loud emergency beep as part of the government’s instant disaster alerting service test.

The alert, which appeared on multiple phones, led to confusion among people who initially struggled to understand what had happened. When users checked their screens, they saw a message beginning with the words “Extremely severe alert”.