2018 Hawaii false missile alert facts for kids
On January 13, 2018, a false ballistic missile alert was issued by the Emergency Alert System and Commercial Mobile Alert System over television, radio, and cellphones in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The alert said that there was an incoming ballistic missile threat to Hawaii, advised residents to seek shelter, and said "this is not a drill".
The message was sent at 8:07 a.m. HST. 38 minutes later a second message was sent describing the first as a "false alarm". State officials later blamed a button pushed in error during a shift change at the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency for the false first message.
Governor David Ige publicly said he was sorry for the false alert. The United States Federal Communications Commission and the Hawaii House of Representatives announced investigations into the incident.
Images for kids
-
David Ige, who served as Governor of Hawaii at the time of the incident
-
Former U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Bruce E. Oliveira (left) was tasked by the State of Hawaii to lead an internal investigation into the incident.
