How to turn on emergency alerts on your iPhone to stay aware of local emergencies and safety warnings

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How to turn on emergency alerts on your iPhone to stay aware of local emergencies and safety warnings

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Turn on emergency alerts on your iPhone to help keep you more aware of your surroundings.

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  • You can turn on emergency alerts on your iPhone through the Notifications menu in your Settings app, though it's likely enabled by default.
  • Emergency alerts will cause your iPhone to ring in a variety of situations, including extreme weather conditions or when a missing child is reported nearby.
  • It's a simple four-step process to make sure you're in the know for all major emergency alerts.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

We've all dreamt of being the hero, able to help in the event of any emergency. And while your iPhone can't give you superpowers, it can keep you aware of the emergencies happening around you through its alert system.

The emergency alert system built into your iPhone (along with most phones nowadays) will cause your phone to sound whenever it receives a notification from your local public safety agency. These notifications can include inclement weather reports, active shooter warnings, suspect descriptions, and more.

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So for those iPhone users who are interested in hearing about every emergency nearby, there's an easy way to make sure you stay updated all local emergency alerts.

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How to turn on emergency alerts on your iPhone

1. Open the iPhone's Settings app.

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2. Scroll down to "Notifications." The setting's red icon will have a square with a circle in the top right corner. Tap it.

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You'll be able to tinker with your iPhone's emergency alert settings on the Notifications page.

3. Scroll toward the bottom of the page, past the downloaded apps listed under "Notification Style," all the way to "Government Alerts."

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Beneath all your other notification settings for downloaded apps, you'll find a Government Alerts section.

4. Under the "Government Alerts" heading, you'll see three options: "AMBER Alerts," "Emergency Alerts," and "Public Safety Alerts." If the switches next to them are grayed out, tap the switches to turn them on. They should all be green.

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You'll now be among the first to receive important information about inclement weather and other important news.

Just be wary that, whether you like it or not, Presidential Alerts are mandatory, and unlike Emergency Alerts, they can't be toggled on or off.

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