In mid - January , the Hawaiian state Emergency Management Agencysent out an erroneous textto all cell phones in the state warning of a “ BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII , ” sending many resident physician intoan hour - long panicas they run for cover from what they fear was a North Korean atomic bomb . Though it first appeared thatbad designin the EMA computer system which sent out the alarm was to blame , federal research worker later said the alertwas on purpose sentby anow - fired employeewho slip an ongoing drill for a real attack .
The incident did monolithic hurt to the credibility of the pinch alert organization , and take chances Hawaiians ignoring any potential future alarms sent out if North Korea or anyone elseactually does set in motion a missileat the Aloha State . The EMA ’s director has since free . So it ’s perhaps not surprising that some legislator want to take the responsibility out of the hands of country governments altogether .
Sens . Brian Schatz , Kamala Harris , and Cory Gardner have introduced bipartisan legislation title the Authenticating Local Emergencies and Real Threats , which is mean to make the federal government activity the only authority on the affair . Per a jam tone ending from Schatz ’s office , the ALERT Act would “ restrict the self-confidence to alarm the world of a missile scourge to the Union governance , ” with only the Federal Emergency Management Agency allow to send such alerts via its Integrated Public Alert and Warning System . The legislation also would “ require FEMA to establish a process to quickly give notice state authorities when a missile alert is come out so they can activate their own protective action plans to ensure public safe . ”
“ State are laboratories of majority rule , ” Schatz quipped in the program line . “ They should not be the research lab of missile alerts . The people who experience first should be the mass who tell the rest of us . This legislation cook clear that the authority to place projectile alert repose with the federal governance . ”
allot toHawaii Now , Schatz say U.S. Pacific Command presently has to liaise with the Department of State government to send out an alert , while the statute law would admit it to mail alert like a shot through the Department of Defense .
The interim theater director of the EMA , Brig . Gen. Moses Kaoiwi Jr. , distinguish Hawaii Now that he was open to believe the proposal . However , Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim told the station he was mistrustful the federal government lack “ locate specific information ” necessary to coordinate a answer to any potential disaster and that he hop local governance would be allow for to ship follow - up messages .
FEMA has amixed track record , however . It faced monolithic literary criticism for the federal governance ’s response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 , and most recently , the agency stand up impeach ofbungling millions of dollarsin declaration for catastrophe reliever in Puerto Rico follow Hurricane Maria .
[ Hawaii Now ]
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