Gov. Ron DeSantis called for “swift accountability” over an emergency-alert test that went out to smartphones early Thursday. At 4:45 a.m., an alert was issued reading “TEST — This is a TEST of the Emergency Alert System. No action is required.”
The state Division of Emergency Management later posted an apology on Twitter: “We know a 4:45 AM wake up call isn’t ideal.”
The apology included an emoji of a grinning face with sweat, indicating “Whew, that was a close call.” The division said it conducts emergency alerts monthly on a variety of platforms, and the test Thursday morning was expected to be for people watching TV.
“This alert was supposed to be on TV and not disturb anyone already sleeping,” the division said. The division later said “appropriate action” is being taken so that “only true emergencies are sent as alerts in the middle of the night.”
DeSantis later said in a Twitter post that he’s ordered Division Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie “to bring swift accountability for the test of the emergency alert system in the wee hours of the morning. This was a completely inappropriate use of this system.”
The vendor is Everbridge.
You might want to inform the Governor that for some of us, that notification was at 3:45 am! But of course Tallahassee thinks all of Florida is on eastern time.