Trial scheme could see public warned over text in event of emergency The UK government is to carry out a trial scheme in Scotland that could see the public automatically receive mobile text warnings in the event of an emergency. A new alert system could be introduced to steer people away from danger and tell them where to get help. It would be used to send information and warnings about a flu pandemic, flood, chemical leak, fire or a catastrophe involving a plane or train. Tests of the technology will be carried out over the next two months in Glasgow city centre as well as Easingwold in North Yorkshire and Suffolk. If successful the system - which has been drawn up by the National Security Council (NSC) - will be rolled out to cover the whole country. A spokesman for the NSC said it would be used in any situation where "we judge that by sending an alert we could prevent loss of life or damage to property." The Cabinet Office will use mobile phone companies to send an authorised message to all mobile phone users in a given area. Three companies, EE, Vodafone and O2, will take part in the tests. Glasgow's trial will take place on October 3 and will see people receive four text messages directing them to a government website where they are to provide feedback. Around 50,000 people are expected to receive a text message during the trial scheme. Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said: "The tests will look at how different technologies work and how the public react when they receive an emergency alert." He added: "I want to reassure the public that these tests are not linked to any threat or specific hazard in their area. We have included diverse areas - both rural and urban - as part of our tests, as we want to look at how effective the different systems are in different areas in using mobile phones to deliver mass messaging. The message itself will make clear that it is only a test and I do not want the public to be alarmed in any way. We are also looking for help from the public in evaluating how well the tests worked and how they felt about receiving messages in this way and we would welcome the public's views which they can provide via an online survey or a series of focus groups. Ensuring that local areas receive quick accurate information in the event of an emergency is crucial to an effective response and the information that we receive from these tests will help us develop systems that local emergency responders will be able to use in the future.