Emergency phone alert drill in Barcelona scheduled for November 3

The planned test of the ES-Alert mobile phone warning system in Barcelona and the surrounding area will take place on November 3, next Monday, at 10am.

The Civil Protection drill affecting around 5 million people in the counties of Baix Llobregat, Barcelonès, Maresme, Vallès Occidental, and Vallès Oriental was originally scheduled for October 8.

Authorities have performed large-scale testing before, for example, in September 2023, when mobile phones in the same counties received a text message accompanied by a loud noise and vibration stating: "Civil Protection alert test of the Catalan government. It's a drill. Do not call 112. In a real emergency, you would receive instructions to protect yourself."

After Monday's test, authorities will offer a link to respond to a survey to inform officials if they received the test correctly.

Marta Cassany, general director of Civil Protection, explained on Tuesday that the test is a way for residents to be aware of how to act in case of a real emergency.

Tests are also carried out to check that all systems work to ensure that, in an emergency, all alerts will be sent "effectively."

In July 2025, most people in Catalonia received a real emergency alert warning of severe rainfall, although some were worried and confused when they realized they hadn't received the notification on their phones.

How do I receive the alerts?

Emergency alerts appear on your mobile phone like a full-screen text message, accompanied by a loud sound and vibration, even if the phone is silenced, locked, or in Do Not Disturb mode.

No app or prior setup is needed. Compatible phones connected to a mobile network will receive the alert automatically.
Most modern Android (11+) and iOS (15.6+, iPhone 6 and newer) devices are preconfigured to receive ES-Alert messages.

The alerts cannot be disabled due to their high-urgency status, but older phones may not be fully compatible.