B.C emergency alert an accident

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“Today’s Alert Ready test was an accidental re-broadcast of last week’s test due to human error.”

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Twitter erupted shortly after with some saying this…

” Seriously!? The emergency system at the mercy of ‘human error’? Annoyance aside, this doesn’t instill any confidence in your ability to do your job properly… sigh!”

and some were more scared than others

” you owe me a pair of underwear ”

” Yes! Scared the crap out of me. Did not know my phone could get that loud. ”

But there were some defending it

“I don’t know why people are getting so bent out of shape. Mistakes happen. I jumped a mile, but a bit of adrenaline won’t hurt me. (Might even be a good thing? Lol!) And it prompted my teen to check her messages, which was also helpful. ”

CKPG reached out to speak with the folks from both Minister Farnworth’s office and Emergency Info of BC, and received a lengthy written statement, which reads

Today’s Alert Ready message:

• Today’s Alert Ready test was an accidental re-broadcast of last week’s test because of human error.
• Emergency Management BC alerting staff regularly conduct internal tests of the Alert Ready System.
• When conducting these tests, they follow written Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Today, the staff involved mistakenly used the written SOP for the external (public) system test, rather than the regularly scheduled internal system tests, which happen multiple times a week.
• All internal tests of the Alert Ready System are clearly marked as “TEST ALERTS”.
• Emergency Management BC is reviewing what happened today, and current Alert Ready procedures, to help ensure this does not happen again in the future.

Along with the reasoning behind why emergency alerts are sent out.

Why the Alert System is important:

• Our government knows the importance of emergency preparedness, and tests of the wireless emergency alerting system are essential to this preparedness.
• Wireless alerting has allowed B.C. to broaden its reach to make sure more people had access to critical and possible life-saving information in the event of an emergency or disaster.
• That’s why B.C. conducts regular testing of the system. Testing improves public awareness about the system and what to expect in the event of an actual emergency alert.
• Public alerts allow us to rapidly warn the public of imminent or unfolding threats to life. The system also includes TV and radio alerts.
• It’s a tool that builds on other alert tools in B.C such as the Provincial Emergency Notification System, social media, and in a number of communities, subscription text alerts, sirens and other alerting mechanisms.
• The aim is to reach as many people on as many communication platforms as possible.