# FR-Alert

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**FR-Alert** is a national [emergency population warning](/source/Emergency_population_warning) system in France using [cell broadcast](/source/Cell_Broadcast) technology. It is used by French authorities (prefects or mayors) to quickly alert and inform the public via [mobile phones](/source/Mobile_phone) in case of an imminent or ongoing major emergency or disaster. The term *red alert* (*vigilance rouge*) indicates immediate danger to life or physical safety. The system is linked to both the French SAIP system and the European [EU-Alert](/source/EU-Alert) framework.

Within the danger zone, FR-Alert provides information on the nature of the crisis and the behavior to adopt to ensure safety.[1]

It requires operational [electrical grid](/source/Electrical_grid) and [mobile telephony networks](/source/Mobile_Telephone_Networks) to function.

## Description

This is a national system, based on the EU-wide EU-Alert standard defined in the European Electronic Communications Code, which sets harmonized specifications for public warning services.

Developed and deployed by [Intersec](/source/Intersec), it has been operational since June 21, 2022 (2022-06-21).[2] It allows authorities to send indiscriminate alerts to mobile phone users. Messages are broadcast within specific zones using cell towers from [mobile network operators](/source/Mobile_network_operator). It complements the SAIP system.[3]

The majority of [mobile operating systems](/source/Mobile_operating_system) (such as [Android](/source/Android_(operating_system)) and [iOS](/source/IOS)) support cell broadcast by default and offer settings to manage alerts.

## Gallery

		- iPhone settings for FR-Alert

		- FR-Alert message on iPhone

		- Android settings for FR-Alert

		- FR-Alert message on Android

## Technology

Alerts are transmitted via radio waves using cell broadcast through [4G](/source/4G) and [5G](/source/5G) antennas, not via [SMS](/source/SMS), to avoid network saturation.[2] Any user within a 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) radius receives the alert with a specific sound,[4] even if the phone is in silent mode.[5] The broadcast can be supplemented with geolocated [2G](/source/2G) or [3G](/source/3G) SMS, though these may be delayed.[2]

## Activation

The decision to send an alert is made by the Prime Minister or prefects,[6] although mayors may request activation in local emergencies.[7]

Since June 2022, several tests have been conducted.[8] These range from technical test messages to live crisis scenarios, including an alert on 28 February 2023 across metropolitan France.[9][10]

FR-Alert was first triggered for a real event on 11 July 2023 in five eastern French departments ([Franche-Comté](/source/Franche-Comt%C3%A9) and [Haut-Rhin](/source/Haut-Rhin)) for severe thunderstorm warnings. Ironically, the most affected areas were [Côte-d'Or](/source/C%C3%B4te-d'Or) and [Bas-Rhin](/source/Bas-Rhin), which were not under red alert.

On 13 May 2024, FR-Alert was controversially triggered by the [Paris Police Prefecture](/source/Paris_Police_Prefecture) to send an informational message related to the [2024 Summer Olympics](/source/2024_Summer_Olympics).[11] Critics deemed the alert disproportionate as there was no actual emergency.[12]

It was also tested in the La Rochelle urban area on 9–10 April 2025 as part of a storm crisis management drill, Exercise ÉOLE 2025.[13][14]

## Research and development

In 2023–2024, under France's [ecological transition program](/source/Environmental_planning) (*France Nation Verte*), discussions began to integrate FR-Alert into climate and biodiversity-related emergency planning.[15]

There's growing awareness of mixed-risk scenarios — e.g., a technological disaster triggered by a natural hazard — such as the [Fukushima nuclear disaster](/source/Fukushima_nuclear_disaster), caused by an [earthquake](/source/Earthquake) and [tsunami](/source/Tsunami).[16][17][18]

The World Health Organization (WHO) also stresses better preparedness for mental health risks.[19] Retrospective disaster studies show underestimated mental health effects, especially for children and pregnant women exposed to disasters.

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["FR-Alert: What is France's Emergency Alert System"](https://www.frenchentree.com/living-in-france/healthcare/fr-alert-what-is-frances-emergency-alert-system/). *FrenchEntrée*. 2024-10-10. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:0_2-2) ["FR-Alert : le nouveau dispositif d'alerte à la population française"](https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/actualites/A15732). *www.service-public.fr* (in French). Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Information and warning systems | Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole et ville de Montpellier"](https://www.montpellier.fr/en/daily-life/living-here/emergencies-safety-and-prevention/I'm-prepared-for-an-emergency-situation/know-the-means-of-information-and-warning). *www.montpellier.fr*. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["FR-ALERT, le dispositif d'alerte français : quels défis ? | Icsi"](https://www.icsi-eu.org/es/node/497). *www.icsi-eu.org*. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Alerter et protéger : déploiement national du dispositif FR-Alert"](https://www.interieur.gouv.fr/actualites/dossiers-de-presse/alerter-et-proteger-deploiement-national-du-dispositif-fr-alert-0). *interieur.gouv.fr*. 2022-10-14. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Alerter et protéger : déploiement national du dispositif FR-Alert"](https://www.interieur.gouv.fr/sites/minint/files/medias/documents/2022-10/18-10-2022-dp-fr-alert.pdf) (PDF). *interieur.gouv.fr*. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Dispositif FR-Alert : les maires pourront demander le lancement d'une alerte en cas de catastrophe | Maire-Info, quotidien d'information destiné aux élus locaux"](https://www.maire-info.com/securite-civile/dispositif-fr-alert-les-maires-pourront-demander-le-lancement-d'une-alerte-en-cas-de-catastrophe-article-26828). *www.maire-info.com*. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Les alertes"](https://fr-alert.gouv.fr/les-alertes). *fr-alert.gouv.fr*. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Exercice de sécurité civile - Test FR-Alert - Jeudi 29 septembre 2022 après-midi - Les services de l'Etat dans le Calvados"](https://web.archive.org/web/20221104074149/https://www.calvados.gouv.fr/exercice-de-securite-civile-test-fr-alert-jeudi-29-a10533.html). *calvados.gouv.fr*. 2022-09-28. Archived from [the original](https://www.calvados.gouv.fr/exercice-de-securite-civile-test-fr-alert-jeudi-29-a10533.html) on 2022-11-04. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["Incendies en Gironde : plus de 16.000 personnes évacuées ce lundi, la nuit s'annonce très compliquée - ici"](https://www.francebleu.fr/infos/faits-divers-justice/incendies-en-gironde-la-teste-landiras-guillos-13-000-hectares-brules-foret-pompiers-1658086733). *ici, le média de la vie locale* (in French). 2022-07-18. Retrieved 2025-05-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** ["« Alerte extrêmement grave » : le dispositif FR-Alert activé pour envoyer un message d'information sur les JO 2024"](https://www.lemonde.fr/sport/article/2024/05/13/alerte-extremement-grave-le-dispositif-fr-alert-active-pour-envoyer-un-message-d-information-sur-les-jo-2024_6233017_3242.html) (in French). 2024-05-13. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** [""Alerte extrêmement grave": un message FR-Alert envoyé sur des téléphones pour les JO de Paris"](https://rmcsport.bfmtv.com/jeux-olympiques/securite/alerte-extremement-grave-un-message-fr-alert-envoye-sur-des-telephones-a-paris_AN-202405130849.html). *RMC Sport Jeux Olympiques* (in French). 2024-05-13. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** ["Tempêtes : un exercice inédit - Actualités - Agglo La Rochelle"](https://web.archive.org/web/20250317095501/https://www.agglo-larochelle.fr/-/tempetes-un-exercice-inedit). *agglo-larochelle.fr*. 2025-03-11. Archived from [the original](https://www.agglo-larochelle.fr/-/tempetes-un-exercice-inedit) on 2025-03-17. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** ["Exercice ÉOLE 2025 - Test du dispositif FR-Alert"](https://www.charente-maritime.gouv.fr/Actualites/Espace-Presse/Dossiers-de-presse/Archives/DOSSIERS-DE-PRESSE-2024/Exercice-EOLE-2025-Test-du-dispositif-FR-Alert). *Les services de l'État en Charente-Maritime* (in French). Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** ["Feuille de route Numérique et Données pour la Planification écologique"](https://www.info.gouv.fr/upload/media/content/0001/07/11a344f3ac034df1bd2e22cc0c2bbb882da2a494.pdf) (PDF). *info.gouv.fr*. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-16)** Nagatani, Keiji; Kiribayashi, Seiga; Okada, Yoshito; Otake, Kazuki; Yoshida, Kazuya; Tadokoro, Satoshi; Nishimura, Takeshi; Yoshida, Tomoaki; Koyanagi, Eiji; Fukushima, Mineo; Kawatsuma, Shinji (2013). ["Emergency response to the nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plants using mobile rescue robots"](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/rob.21439). *Journal of Field Robotics*. **30** (1): 44–63. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1002/rob.21439](https://doi.org/10.1002%2Frob.21439). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1556-4967](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1556-4967).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-17)** Dab, William (2023). *Environnement et santé publique: fondements et pratiques*. Références santé social (2e éd. [enrichie et mise à jour] ed.). Rennes: Presses de l'École des hautes études en santé publique. pp. 499–520. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-2-8109-1007-6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-2-8109-1007-6).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-18)** Murata, Atsuo; Karwowski, Waldemar (2021-03-04). ["On the Root Causes of the Fukushima Daiichi Disaster from the Perspective of High Complexity and Tight Coupling in Large-Scale Systems"](https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/13/3/414). *Symmetry*. **13** (3): 414. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.3390/sym13030414](https://doi.org/10.3390%2Fsym13030414). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2073-8994](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2073-8994).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-19)** ["Plan d'action global pour la santé mentale 2013-2030"](https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/361818/9789240056923-fre.pdf?sequence=1) (PDF). *iris.who.int*. Retrieved 2025-05-05.

## External links

- [Official website](https://fr-alert.gouv.fr/)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [FR-Alert](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FR-Alert) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FR-Alert?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.