New Emergency Warning System Launched In Belgium

This post is also available in: עברית (Hebrew)

Belgium’s Minister of the Interior, Joëlle Milquet has announced the pilot launch of an emergency population warning and information system in Belgium

Thales was selected in November 2013 by the Crisis Center of the Federal Public Service (FPS) Internal Affairs to provide Belgium with the new system called BE-ALERT.

According to HS Today in response to various incidents in Belgium in recent years, the ability to alert the population rapidly, selectively and effectively is a central component of the Crisis Center’s policy to upgrade and extend its channels of communication.

Thales and program partner Unified Messaging Systems (UMS) of Norway, specialists in early warning and mass notification solutions, designed and implemented the BE-ALERT national warning system, incorporating proprietary technology from UMS for the Belgian authorities responsible for crisis management at the local, provincial and national level.

iHLS – Israel Homeland Security

Thales provided the Crisis Center with additional support for the rollout of the pilot, including local assistance, training operators and adapting the system to the customer’s exact requirements.

BE-ALERT takes the form of a secure platform that is accessed via the Internet. Beginning March 17, every citizen has been able to register with the system online at so that they can receive alerts directly.

After the test and analysis period, the BE-ALERT system will be rolled out nationally and made available to all governors and local authorities across the country.