Panic In Hawaii After A False Alarm Of Incoming Ballistics Missiles Was Issued To People's Cell Phones

Daily Mail: 'The whole state was terrified': Panic in Hawaii as Civil Defense issues alert for 'inbound ballistic missile threat' which told residents to 'urgently seek shelter' - then takes 37 MINUTES to say it was a false alarm

* The alert was issued to residents' phones at 8.07am on Saturday morning
* It told them to seek shelter and warned of an 'inbound ballistic missile threat'
* Residents called Civil Defense in a panic and were told it was a mistake
* The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency tweeted that it was a false alarm 12 minutes later
* It took 37 minutes for a second phone alert to be issued across the state
* By then, terrified residents had flocked to shelters and into their garages
* Some say they never even received the second message on their phones
* Governor David Ige said the alert was sent out by accident when a Civil Defense employee mistakenly pushed the button during a shift change
* A Federal Communications Commission investigation into the incident is underway

Panic spread through the state of Hawaii on Saturday morning when residents received a phone alert for an 'inbound ballistic missile threat' that was accidentally sent out by Civil Defense but which was not corrected for the best part of an hour.

Scores of confused residents tweeted screenshots of the warnings after receiving the alert at 8.07 local time.

It read: 'BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL'.

A similar message flashed up on local television networks and brought live sports games to a halt.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: I had the exact same experience when I was a teenager in the Soviet Union. It was in the mid-1970s on a weekend in summer and the nuclear sirens went off. I was outside and I sincerely believed that the U.S. and the Soviet Union were at war. I ran to my home and noticed that my parents were not there .... making me even more afraid on what was happening. I put on the radio .... and I was relieved to hear regularly programing. There was a still a part of me that believed the missiles were still going to strike .... but after a few minutes the sirens went-off .... and everything went back to normal. I learned later that there was a glitch in the system that activated the sirens. 50 years later .... I can say with confidence that I am still scarred by that experience.

More News Om Panic In Hawaii After A False Alarm Of Incoming Ballistics Missiles Was Issued To People's Cell Phones

Hawaii officials mistakenly warn of inbound missile -- AP
U.S. military’s Pacific Command says ballistic missile warning sent in error to Hawaii -- Reuters
Warning of ballistic missile inbound to Hawaii a 'false alarm': officials -- AFP
Hawaii Panics After Alert About Incoming Missile Is Sent in Error -- New York Times
Hawaii officials say 'false alarm' on alert about inbound ballistic missile -- The Hill
Hawaii missile alert: False alarm warns residents of "ballistic missile threat" -- CBS News
'This is not a drill': Hawaiians get false alert of missile attack due to worker's pushing 'wrong button' -- ABC News
'The whole state was terrified': How Hawaii reacted to false missile alert -- BBC
'Chaotic and nerve-wracking scene' as people across Hawaii get false alarm of imminent missile attack -- ABC News
Hawaii Dem calls for 'tough and quick accountability' for false alarm -- The Hill
Hawaii rep: False alarm about incoming missile 'taste of the stark reality' -- The Hill