One study found 30% of Texans have opted out of emergency cell phone alerts, the highest rate in the country.
DALLAS — You might recall your cell phone going off on Wednesday evening with a Blue Alert.
But did you read it? Can you remember the warning?
The deadly flooding in the Texas Hill Country brought questions about the state’s warning and alert systems in place for emergency situations. However, some Texans may also be suffering from “warning fatigue.”
Grant Holland is a director with Dallas Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and said, over time, people can become too dismissive, even with potentially life-saving warnings.
“When we have repeated warnings that are not paired with any sort of real outcome relevant to us, we are much less likely to listen to them,” Holland said.
Data suggests it is true.
The Wall Street Journal reports a 2024 RAND research study found 30% of Texans have opted out of emergency cell phone alerts, the highest rate in the country.
Back in October, a Blue Alert, the alert issued when a law enforcement officer is injured or killed, received 4,000 FCC complaints in Texas after it triggered cellphones at 4:30 a.m.
Holland believes if someone receives alert after alert and does not find them relevant to their specific location, they will become complacent.
“They will be less likely to pay attention the next time their phone makes that noise.”
Unfortunately, tragedies like the one in Kerrville have a way of recapturing everyone’s attention, at least in the short term. Dallas CBT has already seen an increase in calls about “weatherphobia.”
The state’s alert system during floods is now part of the agenda for the upcoming special session for the Texas legislature. Representative Mihaela Plesa believes lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have the desire make improvements.
Not just in the way the warnings are sent but to make sure they are heeded.
“Those alert systems are in place because they are important,” said Plesa. “If we need to do an educations campaign to educate people how to respond or how to get information when they receive one of those warnings, I am ready to get to work on that as well.”
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick recently said the state could fund siren systems for areas prone to dangerous flooding.