Pushing the wrong button : False alert of missile threat to Hawaii sent by human error

An emergency text alert on Saturday warning residents in the U.S. state of Hawaii of an imminent ballistic missile threat was false alarm sent out due to human error, state officials said.


The U.S. military's Pacific Command and state authorities confirmed that there was no missile threat to Hawaii, which is a chain of islands in the Pacific Ocean, and home to the U.S. Pacific Command.

Hawaii Governor David Ige said in comments aired on CNN that "I was awakened by the alert like everyone else here in the state of Hawaii. It was unfortunate and regrettable."

Ige apologized for the incident, saying that someone at the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency. "pushed the wrong button" during a routine shift change.

Such shift changes occur three times a day every day of the year, he added.
 (chinamedia)
14/1/18