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Emergency Alert System To Be Tested Nationwide

(AP) -- An emergency alert system is being tested across the country.

The test is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday and will be broadcast on all radio and television channels. It will last for about 30 seconds.

Listeners will hear a message indicating that it's a test.

The test is being organized by several federal agencies. Officials say they're doing the test in the afternoon to avoid rush-hour disruptions. They say the date was picked because it's near the end of hurricane season but before the arrival of winter.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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