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Residents "Crying And Screaming" After False "ICBM Threat" Alert Rattles Hawaii; Gabbard Slams Trump
13
January, 2017
Update
2: More details are coming out surrounding just how this terrifying
false alert impacted Hawaii's citizens.
NBCNews reports that the ballistic missile threat left people "crying
and screaming" in Hawaii on Saturday, the state's officials said
the message was sent in error.
California
resident Elizabeth Fong is in Hawaii looking to buy a house and
received the alert. She said she didn't receive a correction alert,
stating it was a false alarm, until 8:46 a.m.
The
aftermath of the false alert was "crazy," she told NBC Bay
Area, and prompted people to run around on the streets "crying
and screaming," wondering what to do.
"I
prayed to God and asked for forgiveness of my sins and for Him to
protect us," she said, adding that people are still shaken up.
Andy
Thammavongsa, who tweeted a screenshot of his phone that showed the
time between each alert, lives in Ewa Beach and told NBC in a Twitter
message, "Everyone was panicking, the whole island was awake and
alert."
He
added that "there's nothing really you can do honestly" if
the alert were real, saying there's "nowhere to take shelter,
the island is only so big."
As
we detailed below, many people in Hawaii took to social media during
and after the alert.
*
* *
Update
1: Gov. David Ige and head of Hawaii's Emergency Management agency,
Vern Miyagi, told Hawaii News Now that the false alert was the result
of human error - and boiled down to someone pushing the wrong button.
Oddly,
while the local officials proclaimed it an error, The White House
described a false inbound missile alert received by Hawaii residents
on Saturday morning as an "emergency management exercise,"
offering no further explanation for the erroneous warning.
"The
President has been briefed on the state of Hawaii's emergency
management exercise," White House deputy press secretary Lindsay
Walters told reporters in West Palm Beach, Fla.
"This
was a state exercise," she added.
*
* *
Shortly
after 8am local time Saturday, Hawaii's emergency alert system sent
out a shocking tweet to its citizens: "Ballistic Missile threat
inbound to Hawaii. Seek Immediate shelter, This is not a drill."
The
emergency alert was sent to all cellphones...
And
interrupted Hawaiian TV...
Hawaiians
who got up early to watch soccer or basketball instead got the scary,
robotic voice warning of a missile’s imminent impact.
...
Holy hell this is terrifying.
This is the exact moment the Hawaii Emergency Alert System for the Ballistic Missile alert interrupted Hawaiian TV. #Hawaii #BallisticMissle #EAS
Hawaii Emergency Management Agency spokesman Richard Repoza confirmed it's a false alarm. He says the agency is trying to determine what happened.
And
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard quickly took to Twitter to confirm the emergency
alert a false alarm...
HAWAII - THIS IS A FALSE ALARM. THERE IS NO INCOMING MISSILE TO HAWAII. I HAVE CONFIRMED WITH OFFICIALS THERE IS NO INCOMING MISSILE.
U.S.
Pacific Command spokesman Cmdr. David Benham said in a statement that
PACOM "has detected no ballistic missile threat to Hawaii"
and that an "earlier message was sent in error."
Politicians
wasted not time in pointing fingers and assigning blame...
“It
was a false alarm based on human error,” Democratic Senator Brian
Schatzof Hawaii later said on Twitter, without offering evidence.
Schatz said Hawaii’s roughly 1.5 million residents were “terrified.
There needs to be tough and quick accountability and a fixed
process.”
“At
a time of heightened tensions, we need to make sure all information
released to the community is accurate,” Senator Mazie Hirono, a
Democrat, said on Twitter. “We need to get to the bottom of what
happened and make sure it never happens again.”
And
Gabbard was then quick to take to MSNBC proclaiming that "our
leaders have failed us. Donald Trump is taking too long... he's not
taking this [nuclear] threat seriously..."
Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D) Politicizes False Missile Alert: “Our leaders have failed us. Donald Trump is taking too long. He's not taking this threat seriously ..."
Hawaii
has been on high alert given claims by North Korea that its newest
intercontinental ballistic missile could fly 13,000 kilometers (8,000
miles). If true, that would put even the mainland U.S. within range
from Pyongyang. The isolated nation conducted its sixth and most
powerful nuclear test on Sept. 3, and launched more than a dozen
missiles in the past year.
Hawaiians
on Twitter are not happy about this false alarm and who can blame
them.
@MatthewBringas
- Fuck u hawaii alert system
@KDombri
- This mistake caused me to cry...I had a the best morning until I
got this stupid notification
@mastermindhi
- Held my babies and prayed
@MichaelRobison
- So, is this truly a mistake?!!!?? Sirens are going off and people
are in absolute panic....
In
the last month they have begun preparations for a nuclear attack, asSHTFplan.com's Mac Slavo details...
The
previously retired air raid warning sirens from the Cold War era in
Hawaii will be wailing again come December. Only this time, it’s
due to the rising tensions between the United States and North Korea.
Hawaii
has long been a military defense outpost, sparking fears that North
Korea could target the island.
“I
suppose that’s necessary as a precaution,” said Ted Tsukiyama, a
Hawaiian resident, and WWII veteran.
“But
I don’t think North Korea is gonna attack,” Tsukiyama said.
“They’d be foolish to threaten South Korea or Japan or the United
States.”
But the concerns are growing as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has repeatedly threatened to drop a bomb over the Pacific Ocean, and President Donald Trump has threatened North Korea with “fire and fury” and designated North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. In turn, North Korea has continually failed to abide by the United Nations sanctions placed on them, as they advance their weapons of mass destruction.
Sirens
were installed around Hawaii after the second world war started,
according to Tsukiyama, and there would be periodic tests.
“I
remember hearing the sirens going off. The radio would give us a
warning: ‘This is only a test, don’t get alarmed,’” said
Tsukiyama, who was born and raised in Hawaii.
According
to Vern Miyagi, administrator of the Hawaii Emergency Management
Agency (HI-EMA), which is part of the state’s Department of
Defense, the chances North Korea will act are unlikely, but making
sure Hawaii is prepared is still vital.
“If
North Korea launches against us or our allies, the retaliation would
be complete and they would defeat North Korea’s ambition to
continue its regime. The regime would probably end,” explained
Miyagi.
He
notes Hawaii is protected under the U.S. Pacific Command’s
defensive umbrella, the anti-ballistic missile system, and it is home
to the Pacific Command, the military’s headquarters for the
Asia-Pacific region.
Miyagi
has pointed out that “Hawaii is a likely target because we’re
closer to North Korea than most of the continental United States…
As we track the news and see tests, both missile launches, and
nuclear tests, it’s the elephant in the room. We can’t ignore it.
People of Hawaii need to know what Hawaii is doing in preparation for
this.”
Hawaii
has been ramping up their preparations in advance for a potential
nuclear attack by North Korea.
TheAloha State is currently attempting to educate its 1.4 million
residents, as well as its visitors, on how to prepare for a nuclear
attack. Hawaii has become one of the first states in the nation to
initiate a nuclear preparedness campaign and starting December 1, it
will reinstate the “attack warning” siren, which it hasn’t
tested since the Cold War. The siren will follow the monthly
“attention alert” signal, which warns people of an incoming
tsunami or hurricane.
The
state has also been holding community meetings and broadcasting
public service announcements on TV and the radio to prepare people
for a possible attack. Gone are the days of “duck and cover”during the Cold War; today, the mantra is “shelter in place,”
preferably in a concrete structure. Officials also recommend having
enough food and water to survive for 48 hours and being prepared with
supplies to last up to 14 days.
If
North Korea launches a missile, officials estimate it would only take20 minutes to reach its destination. It would take about five
minutes for the United States government to determine where the
missile is going, which would leave about 12 to 15 minutes to warn
the public.
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