The National Weather Service transmitter responsible for broadcasting the Emergency Alert System (EAS) throughout Palm Beach County has been upgraded to enhance the reliability of the National Weather Signal to the County’s western communities.
The National Weather Radio frequency, used to send out an alert-tone across the airways when severe weather or other emergencies threaten the area, is dependant on the Belle Glade transmitter. At the request of the National Weather Service and the County’s agricultural communities near Lake Okeechobee, the Palm Beach County Division of Emergency Management upgraded the outdated transmitter last week to improve the overall broadcast capabilities of the EAS.
After serving the area for more than 25 years the old transmitter was replaced with a new heavy-duty unit operating at 300 watts for a better quality signal. Installed by the County's Radio Division, the new transmitter is capable of multi-lingual announcements and instantaneous updates from the National Weather Service in Miami.
As before, the voice broadcast is available 24-hours a day on 162.400 MHz and can be picked up by Weather Alert Radios which are available at most department stores. The signal, with broadcasts and alerts, can also be received by other high-end radios, most marine radios and some CBs.
Along with its capability of providing a national message to the entire public simultaneously, the EAS structure provides authorized state and local personnel with a quick method to distribute important local emergency information. Additionally, EAS equipment can directly monitor the National Weather Service for local weather and other emergency alerts, which local broadcast stations, cable systems, and other EAS participants can then rebroadcast, providing an almost immediate relay of local emergency messages to the public.
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