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The Canary Islands government has announced it will carry out a new test of its national emergency alert this week as fears continue to grow over the threat of an eruption. The drill, through the ES-Alert system, will take place this Friday (September 26), as part of Spain's first-ever volcanic eruption drill in Garachico, northern Tenerife.

The exercise is being coordinated by the Department of Territorial Policy and Water, through the Directorate General of Emergencies, together with the Tenerife Cabildo. Between 9am and 1pm, the 112 Emergency Coordination Centre (CECOES) will send three trial messages directly to mobile phones - residents and tourists - in the area. The alerts may be received instantly or once a device enters network coverage. Once accepted, the message will disappear from the screen. Messages will appear in English for those with their phones set to a non-Spanish language.

When the test runs, all 4G and 5G devices in the coverage area will receive a message marked "TEST", accompanied by a loud beep and vibration. No response or call to 112 is required. Phones that are switched off or in flight mode will not receive the messages.

Most modern mobile phones are compatible with the system, provided alert reception is activated. This feature is enabled by default on Android 11 or higher and iOS 15.6 or higher.

Authorities have stressed that drivers should not be alarmed if they receive the message while on the road, but should stop in a safe place before reading it and pressing "accept". Families have also been advised to explain the test to elderly relatives in advance to avoid unnecessary worry, reports Canarian Weekly.

According to reports, there is a 40% chance of a Mount Teide eruption within the next 50 years. While an imminent eruption is not expected, recent seismic activity and other indicators like gas emissions and ground deformation show increasing pressure beneath the volcano, sparking leaders to conduct these large-scale preparation drills. Teide last erupted in 1909 from the El Chinyero vent, on the Santiago Ridge.

ES-Alert is already fully operational in the Canary Islands and has been used in recent emergencies, including the major wildfires in La Palma and Tenerife. This system complements traditional channels such as evacuation notices, media reports, social media and loudspeaker systems.

This alert to Brits in Tenerife comes just weeks after the UK held its own drill for its emergency alert system. On September 7, millions of mobile phones across the UK ran out at 3pm, to ensure that the system functioned correctly and could effectively notify the public in real emergencies like extreme weather events or terrorist attacks.

During the 2023 test, some mobile phones on the Three network failed to receive the alert, prompting the government to pledge to rectify the issue. In 2024, the system was deployed on multiple occasions.