Evacuation orders issued across Los Angeles County sent residents battling historic wildfires into panic, only to realize minutes later that the alert had been sent in error.
On Thursday night, a phone alarm went off with a message urging residents to “gather loved ones, pets and essentials” and evacuate their homes.
“An evacuation warning has been issued for your area,” the text alert read.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn admitted on the X show that the warning was false, infuriating already disgruntled residents at the horrific blunder.
“We were informed that the evacuation alert that many of us had just received on our cell phones had been incorrectly issued for the entire county due to a technical error.” she wrote.
“A fix will be announced soon.”
Hahn said the alert was for areas affected by the Kenneth Fire in Woodland Hills.
A few minutes later, “Ignore the last evacuation warning. It was for Kenneth Fire only.”
Stay up to date with NYP's coverage of horrific fires in the Los Angeles area
The gaffe continued to fuel the flames of critics who are already calling for the resignation of California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass over their handling of the deadly wildfires.
“The false alarm was really frustrating. I was on the phone with my family and they were checking on me when my phone rang. Even though I live downtown, , I immediately jumped up and started packing,” LA resident Thomas Jenkins told the Post.
“I didn't stop until I heard the news anchors say they too had received the false alert and it was a mistake. It was irresponsible, annoying and needlessly caused panic.”
“Well done to the county for issuing a false evacuation alert for the entire county and surprising so many people.” Posted by 1 user on X.
“My poor neighbor upstairs was so desperate to get out of here that he panicked and left.”
“A total failure, guys.” Posted by another user on X.
“Imagine receiving this text after reviewing it in the past 24-48 hours.”
Another resident, who requested anonymity, took a different approach.
“I think everyone has been on high alert for the past 48 to 72 hours,” they told the Post. “The evacuation has done more good than harm. I think everyone needs a little reprieve right now. We're all doing our best!”
Many have accused Basu of neglecting his duties in Los Angeles ahead of the fire, which occurred while he was visiting Ghana, thousands of miles away, to celebrate the African presidential inauguration.
She was also criticized for cutting tens of millions of dollars from LA's fire budget.
Since returning to the burning city on Wednesday, Bass has avoided speaking to reporters and, as he read from a script at a press conference, asked people affected by the devastating fires to “URL.” He even told me to go.
Bernie Giglio, a Page Six reporter who lives in the City of Angels with her husband, baby and dog, said the misinformation was “beyond negligence.”
“To unnecessarily panic an entire county that has already been in crisis for two days is beyond negligence. I am outraged,” Giglio said.
“I immediately started packing my things while my husband continued to watch the news. It sat on the doorstep for two days. The anchor's phone rang at the same time as ours, and we all went to separate Because of their location, their first instinct was to wonder if the alarm was warranted.”
Giglio said he realized the alert was false when he checked on the news, and received a cancellation alert a few minutes later.
“Do they know the chaos that's about to happen? Traffic jams? How many people can't trust the actual alerts they're getting right now? My heart is still pounding,” she said. Ta.
The fire broke out Tuesday morning and several days later destroyed about 30,000 acres (47 square miles) in Los Angeles County, causing widespread destruction and evacuations.
At least seven people have died, and the death toll is expected to rise.
Additional reporting by Whitney Vasquez
