False evacuation alert in Los Angeles causes panic among residents
On Thursday, 9 January, residents of Los Angeles received an emergency evacuation notice due to a wildfire. However, as it turned out later, the notification was addressed only to residents of the Calabasas and Agoura Hills areas.
Here's What We Know
At 16:00 local time, iPhone and Android smartphones received a message with the text: "This is an emergency message from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. An evacuation has been ordered in your area. Stay alert, gather your loved ones, pets, and essentials. Stay tuned to alertla.org for news and updates."
The mistake quickly caused chaos on social media. Residents of the district questioned the authenticity of the order. Twenty minutes after the incident, county officials explained that the alert had been sent to all residents by mistake, when it was only for areas near the Kenneth Fire.
At 16:22, a second alert was sent out: "Ignore previous evacuation warning. It was only for the Kenneth Fire."
According to CBS News, the cause was a technical error. The government urged residents to follow the latest information about the fires on the official website.
Nothing like being in a workout class and the music being cut off because everybody got an evacuation notice only to be told 22 minutes later it was a mistake. pic.twitter.com/rm1e8CiJ2K
- Elana (@ItsElanaGold) 10 January 2025
Such incidents are not new. In 2018, a false warning of a ballistic missile threat caused panic in Hawaii. At the time, it was due to a failure to train the warning system.
Errors in such systems can have serious consequences, so officials are stressing the need to improve technology and verification procedures.
The massive wildfires that have engulfed Los Angeles have claimed the lives of at least 5 people, according to official figures. The largest centre of the fire is located in the Pacific Palisades area, one of the most prestigious and expensive neighbourhoods where celebrities live. The fire has already destroyed more than a thousand buildings and thousands more remain under threat. More than 30,000 people have been evacuated from the disaster area, with a total of more than 100,000 residents ordered to evacuate.
