This afternoon, against protocol, the air raid siren went off in the Rotterdam region. The Warning and Alert System (WAS) is tested on the first Monday of every month, but on May 4, the day of National Remembrance Day, there is an exception and the sirens must remain off.
Around 12 noon the signal could be heard in several places in the Rijnmond area. The WAS poles were demolished in Rotterdam, but also in surrounding municipalities such as Vlaardingen, Barendrecht and Hoeksche Waard. This was also the case in several places in North Brabant, reports said Omroep Brabant.
A spokesperson for the Rotterdam-Rijnmond Safety Region speaks of a “human error”. According to her, “it was not properly understood that it is not customary to sound the air raid siren on May 4.” “Of course that shouldn’t have happened.”
The air raid siren is activated by the fire brigade control rooms. With a few mouse clicks on a computer screen, the siren is activated at the desired posts. Things often go wrong: every now and then it happens that there is silence at the usual time because the signal has not been sent to all poles.
The Ministry of Justice and Security determines every year on which days the air raid siren must be tested – and on which days not. Except for May 4, an exception also applies to public holidays that coincide with the first Monday of the month.
Also read
this report from the control room during a monthly test
Live blog
May 4 and 5
National Monument on Dam Square defaced with red paint
