Poland completes nationwide siren test, sends alerts and probes stray activation

On 21 July 2026 the Polish Interior Ministry carried out a country‑wide emergency‑alert drill codenamed “Alarm 2026”. Sirens emitted a three‑minute modulated tone between 07:00 and 19:00 to verify the technical readiness of the warning system and the response procedures of the authorities. The Government Centre for Security (RCB) dispatched an SMS alert to all residents confirming the end of the exercise.

Following the scheduled exercise, an unexpected activation of sirens occurred at about 21:00 in Warsaw’s Praga‑Północ district. The RCB spokesperson attributed the incident to a probable technical fault and launched an investigation. Similar SMS notices about the conclusion of the drill were also sent to the Lublin region, confirming that all signals were test‑only and that the warning infrastructure has returned to normal operation.