Different cell phone users in the south-central area of the country reported through social networks, the receipt of a text message that indicated: “Emergency Alert. Apr 13 5:47 PM. Free test message. Sorry for the inconvenience.”
According to the authorities, the alert was received by users of the Entel company, from the O’Higgins region to Los Lagos.
Onemi and the Undersecretary of Telecommunications (Subtel) confirmed that there is no emergency and began work to gather information about the event.
#ONEMIInform They report that a test message from the Emergency Alert System has been received in regions of the southern part of the country. This test is performed by a mobile phone company. Subtel is gathering information.
– onemichile (@onemichile) April 13, 2021
Through Twitter, the emergency agency noted that “this test is carried out by a mobile phone company” and just over an hour after the fact, the Subtel reported that it is preparing a letter for Entel.
🔴 We are preparing a trade to @Entel due to the SAE test alert message issued today, by mistake, in some localities of the country. We clarify that there is no type of emergency that warrants this type of alert. #SubtelInforma pic.twitter.com/c5vKB89YM1
– Undersecretary of Telecommunications (@subtel_chile) April 13, 2021
From the south, the regional director of Onemi Biobío Alexander sandoval, he stressed that “it does not correspond to a message issued from ONEMI, the test did not obey the testing schedule that ONEMI is carrying out”, that “there is no emergency” and that “SUBTEL has indicated that it was due to a test error by a telecommunications company“.
NOW | Emergency alarms sound on cell phones in the Biobío. @Cooperative pic.twitter.com/a0Z1mJhIJd
– Cristofer Espinoza (@CEspinozaQ) April 13, 2021
While since Entel, they indicated, through a statement, that “during the day a internal update of various network platforms, a process that includes tests of the Emergency Alert System (SAE). In this context, some localities in the southern zone received the aforementioned test message.
“Sorry for the inconvenience that this message could have caused, “said the telecommunications company.