Air raid sirens were installed across Europe during the Second World War and the Cold War as civil defence warnings, and many were kept for testing afterwards. In the Netherlands the sirens, called the luchtalarm, were famously tested at noon on the first Monday of every month, a sound almost every Dutch person recognises instantly. The monthly test ended in 2021, but recordings of the tone live on. Online, the siren has become a staple meme sound for fake emergencies, hype build-ups and over-the-top alerts, exactly the way this clip is used on soundboards today.