Yesterday, the Portland Bureau of Emergency Management (PBEM) engaged in an exercise to help ensure our city’s safety. PBEM did what very few emergency management agencies do: It put our community notification system through an ambitious, citywide “stress test.” On a practical level, the test was designed to send a single message to as many Portlanders in the shortest amount of time possible. All landline phones were contacted, as well as all cell, text and email devices voluntarily registered at www.PublicAlerts.org. On a symbolic level, we were challenging our privately contracted vendor, First Call. Though the company had demonstrated success reaching residents on small-scale emergencies during the past year-and-a-half, it had failed in reaching the entire city during a similar test two weeks prior. We wanted First Call to prove it could complete this ambitious task. And we wanted to know long it would take. As we analyze the results of the test, we want to hear your feedback. Did you get the message? How, when and where did you receive it? Please contact PublicAlerts@portlandoregon.gov to let us know. If you live in Portland, don’t have a landline phone and did not receive a test message Thursday, it’s likely because you haven’t signed up at www.PublicAlerts.org. I encourage everyone to register for future notifications. Personal contact information provided during registration is kept private and used only for the purpose of sending geographically tailored emergency messages. My thanks to PBEM and all the other bureaus that cooperated in this test. We’re working hard to ensure the city’s safety during any type of emergency. This test marks an important step in that process. Yours, Sam Adams Mayor