Q: What do the severity colors mean?

- **Red:** Do not travel / active major incident\n- **Orange:** Reconsider travel / significant warning\n- **Yellow:** Exercise increased caution\n- **Info:** Background context, no immediate action needed

Question 1

What is TravelAlert?

Accepted Answer

TravelAlert aggregates official government travel advisories, weather warnings, earthquake data, and health alerts from trusted public sources (US State Department, UK FCDO, NOAA, USGS, WHO) so you can see what's happening at your destination in one place.

Question 2

How do alerts work?

Accepted Answer

We poll official sources every few minutes and surface alerts that match your saved places (within your chosen radius) or your selected coverage areas. Each alert is tagged by severity (info, yellow, orange, red).

Question 3

Why am I not getting push notifications?

Accepted Answer

Push notifications require:
- A modern browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or Safari 16.4+)
- Enable push in Settings → Notifications and grant browser permission when prompted
- **On iPhone / iPad you must add the app to the Home Screen first.** Open the site in Safari, tap the Share button, scroll down and tap "Add to Home Screen". Then open the app from the Home Screen icon and subscribe in Settings. Push notifications do **not** work in regular Safari tabs on iOS — this is an Apple restriction.
- Use the published site (not the preview iframe).

Question 4

How do I allow notifications in Chrome?

Accepted Answer

If you are not seeing browser alerts, check your notification permissions:

1. Click the **lock or warning icon** in the Chrome address bar (next to the URL).
2. Select **Site settings**.
3. Under **Notifications**, change the setting to **Allow**.

Alternatively, open **chrome://settings/content/notifications** in your browser and remove any block entries for **travelalert.world** or **global-vigil-sync.lovable.app**.

After permissions are allowed, go to **Settings → Notifications** in the TravelAlert app and tap **Enable Push Notifications** to create your subscription.

Question 5

How do I install on iPhone / iPad?

Accepted Answer

On iPhone / iPad you must add the app to the Home Screen before push alerts will work:
1. Open the published site in **Safari** (Chrome on iOS will not work for push).
2. Tap the **Share** button at the bottom of the screen.
3. Scroll down and tap **"Add to Home Screen"**, then confirm.
4. Launch the app from the new Home Screen icon.
5. Go to **Settings → Push notifications** and subscribe — allow notifications when the browser asks.

Push notifications do **not** work inside a regular Safari tab on iOS. This is an Apple restriction that applies to every web app, not just TravelAlert.

Question 6

Does it work offline?

Accepted Answer

Yes — once you've loaded the app on the published domain, the last seen alerts and the app shell are cached. You'll see the most recent data even with poor or no connectivity. The offline cache does not work inside the preview/editor.

Question 7

How do I add a destination?

Accepted Answer

Go to Saved Places and search for a city. We use Google Places autocomplete, so just start typing — no need to enter coordinates manually.

Question 8

What do the severity colors mean?

Accepted Answer

- **Red:** Do not travel / active major incident
- **Orange:** Reconsider travel / significant warning
- **Yellow:** Exercise increased caution
- **Info:** Background context, no immediate action needed

Question 9

Where does the data come from?

Accepted Answer

All alerts come from official public sources: US Department of State, UK Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office, NOAA (weather), USGS (earthquakes), and WHO (health). We do not generate alerts ourselves — we aggregate and surface them.

Question 10

Should I rely on this for life-or-death decisions?

Accepted Answer

No. TravelAlert is an aggregator, not an emergency service. Always check the original source and follow guidance from local authorities and your home country's consulate in any actual emergency. See our Safety Disclaimer for details.

Question 11

What does the paid plan include?

Accepted Answer

Free includes saved places and on-device alerts. The paid plan adds push notifications, larger coverage radius, and longer history retention. Cancel anytime from Account → Manage subscription.

Question 12

How do I cancel my subscription?

Accepted Answer

Go to Account → Manage subscription. You'll keep access until the end of your current billing period and won't be charged again.

Question 13

How do I delete my account?

Accepted Answer

Account → Delete account. This removes your profile, saved places, push subscriptions, and notification history. Some billing records are retained as required by law.

Question 14

What data do you collect?

Accepted Answer

Email, saved place names and coordinates, severity preferences, and push subscription endpoints. We do not sell data. See the Privacy Policy for the full list.