Test of North Dakota AMBER Alert

BISMARCK, N.D. - The North Dakota Highway Patrol and the North Dakota Department of Emergency Services will conduct an annual test of the AMBER (America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) Alert system from 2-3 p.m. on Wednesday, May 20. All AMBER Alert components will be tested. Advance notification is important to avoid misinterpretation of this test as an actual AMBER Alert.

            AMBER Alerts are recorded on the North Dakota Department of Transportation’s 511 Road and Weather Information System and are displayed on the NDDOT roadside message signs, the nd.gov and AMBER Alert websites, and on scrolling banners at North Dakota Lottery terminal sites. Six AMBER Alerts involving seven children have been issued in North Dakota. Six of the seven children were successfully recovered. Nationwide, AMBER Alert has been credited with the successful recovery of 767 children.

            The goal of an AMBER Alert is to instantly galvanize the community to assist in the search for and safe return of the abductedchild. The AMBER Alert Program is a voluntary partnership between law enforcement, state agencies, the National Weather Service, and the North Dakota Broadcasters Association to activate an urgent bulletin in child abduction cases meeting AMBER Alert activation criteria.  NDDES, in collaboration with the NWS, uses the Emergency Alert System to provide a description of the abducted child and suspected abductor to statewide radio and television broadcast stations that disseminate the information to the public.  Please register at www.wirelessamberalerts.org to receive text notifications of actual AMBER Alerts that occur in your area.