The Dutch government has issued a reminder that Monday’s midday test of the national siren network is a regular event and not connected to the war in Ukraine.

The reminder has been published because of concerns some people could be worried when the sirens go off, especially if they are not aware of the regular tests, the government said.

The national network, made up of 4,278 sirens, is sounded on the first Monday of every month – and that means Monday March 7 will also be a test day.

The sirens will sound for 1 minute, 26 seconds as usual and a longer alarm would mean there is a real emergency underway.

In that case, people should go indoors immediately, close doors and windows and await further instructions via television, radio or the NL-Alert messaging service.