Today, 25 June 2026, a new round of IT-Alert tests will begin: the public alarm system will be tested in Lombardy and Piedmont for the specific risk of “large dam collapse”, involving the municipalities neighboring the Porto della Torre dam (VA). Tomorrow, 26 June 2026, simulations will be held regarding the Salionze dam, with the involvement of some municipalities in the provinces of Mantua and Verona.
The objective of these simulations is to verify the correct functioning of the system, so as to ensure the efficiency of the communication flows envisaged by the external emergency plan of the various dams.
At the same time, from today 25 June until Saturday 27 June 2026 the Civil Protection System will be engaged in the national exercise “EXE PO 2026”, dedicated to the management of hydrogeological and hydraulic risk in the entire Po river basin and which will involve the Piedmont, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto Regions.
As always, the IT-Alert test will include the sending of text and sound notifications to all mobile phones connected to cell phones in the affected areas, even in the absence of an internet connection. At the moment, the national public warning system, officially active since 2024, is still being tested for three specific risks: tsunamis, volcanic activity of Stromboli and intense rainfall.
The IT-Alert test calendar: where and when the message sounds
The test of 25 June 2026 will affect the municipalities neighboring the Porto della Torre Dam (VA): in particular, the IT-Alert message will be sent to the citizens of 3 municipalities in the province of Varese (Lombardy) and 5 municipalities in the province of Novara (Piedmont). The specific risk simulated is that of the collapse of large dams, which means “the collapse of the barrier of the dam structure itself or the appearance of damage to the dam or landslides that lead to the uncontrolled release of water, such as to reasonably lead to hypothesize the occurrence of a catastrophic event, which generally causes a flood wave and the consequent inundation of the areas located downstream”.
In particular, the calendar provides that:
- 3.30 pm – IT-Alert test for large dam collapse at the Porto della Torre Dam (VA). Municipalities involved:
- For the province of Varese: Somma Lombardo, Vizzola Ticino, Lonate Pozzolo.
- For the province of Novara: Varallo Pombia, Pombia, Marano Ticino, Oleggio, Bellinzago Novarese.
Citizens who will be in the areas involved in the exercise will receive this test message on their mobile phones:
TEST TEST This is an IT-alert TEST MESSAGE. A SIMULATION of a dam collapse is underway in the area where you are located. To find out the message you will receive in case of real danger and to fill out the questionnaire go to www.it-alert.gov.it TEST TEST
What to do when the IT-Alert alarm sounds on your cell phone
As with previous simulations, the IT-Alert test involves sending a text notification and an audible alarm to all smartphones turned on and connected to the cells covering the areas affected by the specific risks being simulated.
Once the simulation message has been received, however, nothing will need to be done: the IT-Alert system, in fact, does not provide for interaction with the messages. Since this is a test, the citizens involved will however be able to fill out a questionnaire (not mandatory) to communicate whether the alert has been received or not, and ensure the efficiency of communication flows in the future.
After a busy program of tests between 2023 and 2024, 3 simulations have so far been carried out in 2026, dedicated to the risk of industrial accidents and the collapse of large dams, with the aim of verifying the correct functioning of the system and identifying the parameters to be optimized to improve its effectiveness.
The EXE PO 2026 national exercise
The EXE PO 2026 simulation will be used to test the operational response of the National Civil Protection Service in the event of an extraordinary flood of the Po – a complex meteorological and hydraulic scenario on an interregional scale – to test in the field the communication flows, the intervention models, the national and regional alert system and the coordination between the different institutional levels.
The initiative will also serve to raise awareness among the population residing in the areas surrounding the Po river, involving all citizens (in particular people with disabilities, elderly people and citizens less familiar with digital tools) in an ordinary context and without real dangers.
