Earlier today, Townhall reported that a false alarm emergency notification had been sent to every single person with a cell phone in Hawaii warning of impending danger. Now, authorities are investigating how this disastrous error occurred in the first place, while panic-stricken citizens recover from the traumatic experience.
The text message read "Emergency Alert: BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL," at approximately at 8:07 HST. While some took to Twitter to determine if it was real, most believed the text message was real and began calling loved ones and seeking shelter.
This was my phone when I woke up just now. I'm in Honolulu, #Hawaii and my family is on the North Shore. They were hiding in the garage. My mom and sister were crying. It was a false alarm, but betting a lot of people are shaken. @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/m6EKxH3QqQ
— Sara Donchey (@KPRC2Sara) January 13, 2018
Texted my mom, worried she's hiding down a storm drain. She texts back some T.S. Elliot. #Hawaii pic.twitter.com/hYlTNBTVwL
— Caitlin Doughty (@TheGoodDeath) January 13, 2018
Words cannot describe the relief my family and I feel that the alarm in Hawaii was false. My girlfriend was born and raised in Hawaii and with most of her family there, the panic was real. We should thank god for every day no matter the struggles and tell our family we love them.
— Karl-Anthony Towns (@KarlTowns) January 13, 2018
So sorry for all the people in Hawaii who went through that — we know someone who’s there with her family. Crying in closet texting goodbyes to loved ones, husband shielding their baby. Sounds traumatic. Hang in there, folks.
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) January 13, 2018
But, all of this was completely unavoidable. The notification was a false alarm. According to The LA Times, this was all human error.
"Hawaii House Speaker Scott Saiki said someone pushed the wrong button, and Cindy McMillan, a spokeswoman for Gov. David Ige, confirmed to the Associated Press that it was human error, but said she didn't have further details", the LA times reported.
Saiki said the system Hawaii residents have been told to rely on failed miserably. He also took emergency management officials to task for taking 30 minutes to issue a correction, prolonging panic. He said in a statement that the Hawaii House of Representatives would begin an immediate investigation. "Clearly, government agencies are not prepared and lack the capacity to deal with emergency situations," Saiki said.
It is not obvious why it took more than 30 minutes to send out an official emergency system text message alerting the public that it was indeed a drill. As a result, The Federal Communications Commission has announced that it will launch a full investigation into what occurred.
The @FCC is launching a full investigation into the false emergency alert that was sent to residents of Hawaii.
— Ajit Pai (@AjitPaiFCC) January 13, 2018
Perhaps not surprisingly, a myriad of liberals took to Twitter to instantly blame President Donald J. Trump for the error.
This Hawaii missle scare is on YOU Mr. Trump. The real FEAR that mothers & fathers & children felt is on YOU. It is on YOUR ARROGANCE. HUBRIS. NARCISSISM. RAGE. EGO. IMMATURITY and your UNSTABLE IDIOCY. Shame on your hate filled self. YOU DID THIS!
— Jamie Lee Curtis (@jamieleecurtis) January 13, 2018
I woke up this morning in Hawaii with ten minutes to live. It was a false alarm, but a real psychic warning. If we allow this one-man Gomorrah and his corrupt Republican congress to continue alienating the world we are headed for suffering beyond all imagination. ;^\ pic.twitter.com/Kwca91IIy2
— Jim Carrey (@JimCarrey) January 13, 2018
Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard: “Our leaders have failed us. Donald Trump is taking too long. He's not taking this threat seriously ... This is literally life and death that is at stake.” pic.twitter.com/mSYY92sm8P
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) January 13, 2018
It seems a bit reckless to have a simple, unguarded button that can send a dire warning to an entire population without at least a few checks on the system to prevent mistakes, but it is even sillier to instantly throw the blame around before the facts come in. When you are President, "The Buck Stops Here," sure, but these celebrities and Democrats would be wise to temper their reaction until more details are reported.