Why the warning sirens will (exceptionally) not sound this Wednesday, January 1

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It's a habit we have every first Wednesday of the month. However, this Wednesday, January 1, 2025 will be an exception to the rule: for this first day of the year, the warning sirens will exceptionally not sound in France.

In question, New Year, a public holiday in France. The monthly test is therefore postponed to Wednesday January 8.

Between 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. usually

Normally, every first Wednesday of the month is synonymous with the siren of the population alert and information system (SAIP) in France. They usually sound between 11:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. throughout the country as a test.

• At 11:45 a.m.: in the north of France, in the west and in the center.
• At 12 p.m.: Grand-Est, Burgundy, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Var.
• At 12:15 p.m.: Corsica, Occitanie, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (except Var).

When this is the case, you hear a cycle of five sequences (modulated sounds) lasting one minute and 41 seconds, according to Civil Security.

If you hear this signal on the first Wednesday of the month, “he does not expect any particular behavior from the population”. This is a test.

On the other hand, in a real danger card, the national alert signal consists of a modulated sound, rising and falling, of three sequences of one minute and 41 seconds, separated by an interval of five seconds. The end of the alert is announced by a continuous 30-second signal.

What to do in the event of a real alert

In the event of an alert linked to a natural risk (floods, rupture of a hydraulic dam, etc.), technological, radiological, chemical, “you must adopt reflex behavior in order to keep yourself safe and facilitate the action of the relief”.

By default, join a building in order to protect yourself and inform yourself about the exact nature of the crisis. Depending on the situation, the authorities will tell you what action to take: protect yourself in a building or evacuate the dangerous area.

Furthermore, you must inform yourself, not pick up your children from school and only telephone in the event of a vital emergency.

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