As wildfires ravaged the Los Angeles area this week, the 10 million inhabitants of LA County remained fixated on their devices, anticipating crucial text messages from officials regarding possible evacuations. These notifications aimed to advise whether residents needed to swiftly gather their belongings and vacate their homes.
However, on Thursday afternoon, millions of individuals in the LA region received a perplexing evacuation warning. The alert, which did not indicate a specific neighborhood or fire, sparked widespread alarm despite at least three significant wildfires active in the county. The notification stated:
**”Emergency Alert. NEW: This is an emergency message from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. An EVACUATION WARNING has been issued in your area. Stay alert for any threats and be prepared to evacuate. Collect family members, pets, and supplies. Keep monitoring local weather, news, and the webpage [alertla.org](http://alertla.org) for further information.”**
The alert encompassed a vast zone, extending from Long Beach in the south to areas north of downtown LA, crossing numerous square miles. The problem? It was dispatched mistakenly.
Santa Monica, a seaside city within LA County that had already dealt with evacuation orders and warnings due to its closeness to the Palisades fire, swiftly reacted on Twitter. Officials reassured residents that nothing had altered as of Thursday afternoon.
By 4:20 p.m., a subsequent alert was broadcasted across the county, clarifying that the prior evacuation warning was erroneous. The revised message indicated that the alert was specifically meant for those impacted by the Kenneth Fire in far northwest Los Angeles. Nevertheless, the clarification lacked detailed information about the Kenneth Fire or its whereabouts. Compounding the confusion, emergency alerts are typically not stored on most smartphones, hindering residents’ ability to review the notifications.
The situation escalated on Friday morning when another ambiguous evacuation warning was sent to residents located miles from the wildfires. According to the *Los Angeles Times*, this second alert only added to the frustration and bewilderment among the public.
Kevin McGowan, the director of the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management, issued an apology in a statement to the *Los Angeles Times*. “I can’t convey enough how regretful I am,” McGowan remarked. He clarified that the alerts were automated and not sent manually by any person or group. The source of the errors remains unclear, but county IT staff and officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are examining the situation. McGowan urged residents to keep emergency alerts enabled despite the technical difficulties, highlighting their significance during genuine emergencies.
For the latest updates on the wildfires, residents can visit [alertla.org](http://alertla.org) or utilize the free app [Watch Duty](https://mashable.com/article/watch-duty-app-la-wildfires), which monitors wildfire activity in real time.
The disorganized dissemination of these alerts underscores the difficulties of overseeing emergency communication in a crisis. As wildfires persist in threatening the area, delivering precise and timely information is a paramount concern for officials.