Failed 4:45 a.m. emergency alert test beamed from millions of smartphones across Florida sparks panic and anger as Ron DeSantis threatens to fire those responsible
Millions of cantankerous Floridians were awakened in the wee hours of Thursday morning by a loud emergency alert sent to their phones – which should have been broadcast on TV.
At 4:45 a.m., Floridians with smartphones were disturbed by a loud alarm, used for Amber Alerts or hurricane warnings, and a text that read, “TEST – This is a TEST of the Emergency Alert System. NO action is required.’
The Florida Division of Emergency Management tweeted an apology for the inadvertent early start, explaining that it was intended as a test run on TVs, which would not disturb or panic anyone already asleep.
One legislator, Senator Blaise Ingoglia, said he would introduce a “Stop Wake Act” — a riff on Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ Stop Woke Act, which bans critical race theory in classrooms and corporate diversity training — to ban Floridians from wake up before 5 am.
Representatives for the DeSantis administration said those responsible for the “inappropriate” alarm would be “fired” early in the morning.
The Florida Division of Emergency Management tweeted an apology for the inadvertent early start, explaining it was intended as a test run on TVs (file image)
The incident sparked anger from the DeSantis administration, saying in an ominous statement those responsible would be “fired” (pictured in Miami in January)
“We know that a 4:45 a.m. wake-up call is not ideal,” the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FLDEM) said.
@FLSERT would like to apologize for the early morning text. Every month we test #emergencyalerts on different platforms. This alarm should have come on TV and not disturb anyone who was already asleep.
“We are taking the appropriate steps to ensure that this never happens again and that only genuine emergencies are sent as alerts in the middle of the night.”
The Florida Association of Broadcasters publishes scheduled emergency alert tests on its website. Currently there is a test every other month at 4:50 am.
The Florida Division of Emergency Management tweeted an apology for the inadvertent early start
Social media users joked and complained about the early wake-up call, with some even suggesting a class action lawsuit
Android and iPhone users have the option to turn off emergency alerts. This is a public alert system often used by state and local authorities to provide important emergency information.
The incident sparked anger in the DeSantis administration, saying in an ominous statement that those responsible would be “fired.”
“This morning’s SERT test alarm at 4:45 a.m. was inappropriate and not done at our direction. The responsible party will be held accountable and duly fired,” said DeSantis spokesman Bryan Griffin Fox news.