How are residents in other EU countries alerted about potential dangers?

Saturday, May 10, 2025

Emergency warning systems in Lithuania and Europe vary; mobile alerts have limitations and future updates are planned.

πŸ”— Read the article on delfi.lt


[This is an automatically generated summary, for reference only]

The Lithuanian public warning system, “Pulsas,” examines how warning systems operate in Lithuania and other European countries. In Lithuania, the GPIS system, active since 2012, alerts residents to extreme events and dangers through sirens, mobile phone alerts, radio, television, and local authorities. However, testing revealed that not all residents receive mobile alerts. Solutions provided include checking phone settings for government alerts on iPhones and Samsung phones, or using a 2G network on smartphones. The system’s limitations include compatibility with diverse mobile devices and ongoing network changes. While GPIS operates across major Lithuanian mobile networks, service is currently unavailable on certain 3G and 2G networks, though improvements are planned. The system’s advantages include wide reach, speed, and independence from global internet platforms. Across the EU, countries are mandated to have such systems. Examples include Poland using SMS based on location, Latvia using modern mobile alerts, Austria with “AT-Alert,” and Spain employing “ES-Alert” alongside traditional media. Experts stress that having the technology is insufficient; effective implementation requires clear strategies and protocols, especially given increasing climate change risks.


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PULSE is an initiative for cross-border collaborative journalism in Europe co-funded by the European Commission under Grant Agreement n. PO 4500158093.

PULSE is an initiative coordinated by OBCT that has been promoting intensive journalistic cross-border collaborations in Europe since 2024. Its main aim is to help strengthen the European public sphere by reporting on and telling stories from new and diverse perspectives.

At the heart of PULSE are 10 leading national news outlets (Delfi – Lithuania, DenΓ­k Referendum – Czechia, Der Standard – Austria, EfSyn – Greece, El Confidencial – Spain, Gazeta Wyborcza – Poland, HotNews – Romania, HVG – Hungary, Il Sole 24 Ore – Italy, Mediapool – Bulgaria) and three transnational organisations, including OBCT , n-ost and Voxeurop .

Additional outlets and journalists are involved as associate partners, including EUobserver , FΓΈljeton (Denmark), H-Alter (Croatia), Levila (Estonia), Rubryka (Ukraine), and The Journal Investigates (Ireland).

PULSE is driven by a sort of virtual transnational newsroom made up of journalists from all the publications involved. It collaboratively produces new journalistic content on European issues on a daily basis, coming in many different languages. The editorial output amounts to over a thousand publications per year, mostly in article form.

PULSE also runs 4 thematic networks open to any European journalist interested in crucial issues such as EU enlargement, relations between the EU and other global powers, the EU’s green transition, or media and the information society. These networks function as online communities and periodically publish calls for pitches.