{"id":391405,"date":"2018-01-14T09:03:31","date_gmt":"2018-01-14T09:03:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=391405"},"modified":"2018-01-14T09:06:10","modified_gmt":"2018-01-14T09:06:10","slug":"hawaii-missile-alert-false-alarm-sparks-panic-us-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2018\/01\/hawaii-missile-alert-false-alarm-sparks-panic-us-state\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawaii missile alert: False alarm sparks panic in US state"},"content":{"rendered":"
An incoming missile alert plunged residents of Hawaii into panic on Saturday morning before it was declared a false alarm.<\/p>\n
Mobile phone users received a message saying: “Ballistic missile threat inbound to Hawaii. Seek immediate shelter. This is not a drill.”<\/p>\n
State Governor David Ige apologised and said it was caused by an employee pressing the wrong button.<\/p>\n
The US government announced there would be a full investigation.<\/p>\n
An alert system is in place because of the potential proximity of Hawaii to North Korean missiles.<\/p>\n
In December, the state tested its nuclear warning siren for the first time since the end of the Cold War.<\/p>\n
How was the alert released?<\/strong><\/p>\n The false warning message was sent to people’s mobile devices, and was also broadcast on television and radio stations.<\/p>\n The phone message notification, all in capital letters, went out at 08:07 (18:07 GMT).<\/p>\n It was corrected by email 18 minutes later\u00a0but there was no follow-up mobile text for 38 minutes, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports.<\/p>\n Governor Ige said human error during one of the thrice-daily shift changes at the state’s Emergency Management Agency (EMA) was to blame for the false alert.<\/p>\n “It was a procedure that occurs at the change of shift where they go through to make sure that the system, that it’s working. And an employee pushed the wrong button,” he explained.<\/p>\n “It was an inadvertent mistake,” said EMA administrator Vern Miyagi. “The change of shift is about three people. That should have been caught… it should not have happened.”<\/p>\n Television and radio broadcasts across the state were interrupted with a recorded emergency message instructing people to stay indoors.<\/p>\n “If you are outdoors seek immediate shelter in a building. Remain indoors well away from windows. If you are driving pull safely to the side of the road and seek shelter in a building while laying on the floor. We’ll announce when the threat has ended. This is not a drill!”<\/p>\n How did Hawaiians react?<\/strong><\/p>\n People in the US state have been sharing stories of momentary frenzy and the panic-stricken messages they exchanged with loved ones after they received the alert.<\/p>\n Videos posted on social media appeared to show students at the University of Hawaii running for shelter after the missile threat was issued.<\/p>\n