By Brad Flahive
The new Civil Defence alert system tested last week was an insight into how technology can warn Kiwis out of harm's way.
The Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management (MCDEM) reported the signal was successfully broadcast from the top of the North Island to the bottom of the South Island.
However, it estimated only a third of the mobile phones in the country would have received the test alert - about 2 million phones.
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While the Civil Defence say the emergency alerts are not solely to be used in the event of an earthquake or tsunami, the technology mirrors what is being used in other countries that, like New Zealand, live under the threat of earthquakes.
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