how did the big island respond to the missile aert (law, assessment)

[terracore]

When the alert went off the wife came into the room and asked what we should do. I replied that somebody at civil defense probably f*cked up, if not the missiles probably will. And its unlikely any would be aimed here since HNL is obviously the target, so we need to worry about the daughter (who lives in HNL).

About that time the phone rang and it was her. She was lucky to get through because shortly afterwards the phone systems puked due to being overloaded. She was crying and didn't know what to do.

I searched the TV and web for news, there was none, which fortified myself that it was a false alarm. We can't normally hear the sirens where we live, but if they go off long enough we can hear dogs howling. No howling.

Most of the information we got in the initial minutes after the alert were on social media. We heard from several reliable sources that it was a false alarm long before anything from "official" channels. 38 minutes later, we got the second alert that there were no missiles. Which was obvious because we had been previously told that we would have less than 15 minutes before the missiles hit after the alerts went off.

Pretty much I would have to give the state of Hawaii an F- for this whole debacle. I can understand making the mistake that caused the false alarm to go off, but to wait 38 minutes to correct it is inexcusable. It has left everybody we have talked to with a complete lack of confidence, not just with missile warnings, but with tsunamis and everything else.

[franklin42]

Anybody who wasn't terrified for at least a few minutes is flat out lying. I'm here for work on the Big Island and it was pretty crazy for a few minutes. I thought about the sirens not going off as well but who knows? Isn't the testing for incoming missiles to Hawaii fairly new? Then I thought Oahu is most likely going to be the target but still. I was a little bit more at ease seeing the social media stuff but it's still social media. So 38 minutes later came the news of a false alarm. What a joke. IF it really happened, the state would be shut down for who knows how long and all of our lives would be changed forever. Obviously just glad it was a false alarm and nobody got hurt. It's just too bad that if this ever happens again, most of the people here will just laugh it off just like they do hurricanes and tsunamis.

[Tulemutt]

Originally Posted by franklin42

Anybody who wasn't terrified for at least a few minutes is flat out lying. I'm here for work on the Big Island and it was pretty crazy for a few minutes. I thought about the sirens not going off as well but who knows? Isn't the testing for incoming missiles to Hawaii fairly new? Then I thought Oahu is most likely going to be the target but still. I was a little bit more at ease seeing the social media stuff but it's still social media. So 38 minutes later came the news of a false alarm. What a joke. IF it really happened, the state would be shut down for who knows how long and all of our lives would be changed forever. Obviously just glad it was a false alarm and nobody got hurt. It's just too bad that if this ever happens again, most of the people here will just laugh it off just like they do hurricanes and tsunamis.

No. I wasn't terrified for even seconds. No lie. Couple reasons:
1. I was on a military base when the "alert" hit my cell. There was no mobilizing around me.
2. There's about a less than zero chance the DPRK would launch any strike against Hawaii.
3. I've served in many military actions - thus have learned to stay calm making situational assessments.

I do recall, with considerable humor, another great lesson learned from being called into action under attack. As I threw my chow tray and ran to my flight station under my first ever alarm, I made a mental note I haven't forgotten in near 50 years since: never postpone any opportunity to keep your bladder and bowels clear - as you never know what might cause you to regret a cavalierly casual attitude in that regard in any future minute.

That first action was a barn-burner. Lasted well over 30 hours of back to back flight operations and sorties before we put the covers back on. As it turned out there were numerous well appreciated minutes here and there to take care of urgent business over the night and following day ... and somehow I managed to maintain the integrity of my shorts ... But it was a nip and tuck effort for quite a while there at first.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by Tulemutt

No. I wasn't terrified for even seconds. No lie.

Agreed. Don’t know anyone “terrified” - at best, lots of people turned on CNN or local news to find nothing and dead silence from sirens.

North Korea is sending people to the olympics. My immediate reaction is someone is getting fired.

[Javacoffee]

Whoever pushed that button "by mistake" should be fired.

Whomever created a system that can be so easily activated "by mistake" should be fired. Are there no fail safes involved to spare American citizens the grief of "a mistake"?

We shouldn't accept this. The public is entitled to a system we can trust without question. Our lives depend on it. Our children's lives depend on it. Our sanity depends on it.

It is, in my opinion, a travesty that government can step forward and merely say, "Sorry. It was a mistake, folks.", and then go on about its day as if nothing terrible just occurred. This is inexcusable. Fire everyone involved.

[Jungjohann]

Originally Posted by Javacoffee

It is, in my opinion, a travesty that government can step forward and merely say, "Sorry. It was a mistake, folks.", and then go on about its day as if nothing terrible just occurred. This is inexcusable. Fire everyone involved.

And just where do you start the 'firing' process? The Tweeting Twitt?

[Soviet]

You start the "firing" process with those in direct control or oversight of this (obviously fallible) system.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by Soviet

You start the "firing" process with those in direct control or oversight of this (obviously fallible) system.

While people will probably get fired - it is easier said than done. They are State workers with State worker protections from the union and it is a fairly drawn out process.

I expect the guy at the top to go first, since he is appointed rather than having union protections but the rest are all union folks.

[Arktikos]

Originally Posted by franklin42

Anybody who wasn't terrified for at least a few minutes is flat out lying..

Visiting tourists, who where doing what they're supposed to be doing on vacation and not tied into electronics, didn't find out about the false alarm until afterwards. A good example of when ignorance is bliss.

The idea that Korea or another nation would fire upon Hawaii at anytime is so far fetched that it should automatically be met with great skepticism.

The reality that an incompetent can simply "push the wrong button" for this warning to come about, without a time delay and ability to recall it, reflects quite poorly on the state of Hawaii and its personnel/agency responsible.

[Javacoffee]

Originally Posted by Blind Cleric

Visiting tourists, who where doing what they're supposed to be doing on vacation and not tied into electronics, didn't find out about the false alarm until afterwards. A good example of when ignorance is bliss.

The idea that Korea or another nation would fire upon Hawaii at anytime is so far fetched that it should automatically be met with great skepticism.

The reality that an incompetent can simply "push the wrong button" for this warning to come about, without a time delay and ability to recall it, reflects quite poorly on the state of Hawaii and its personnel/agency responsible.

And let's not forget the 38 minutes of silence that followed.

None of this makes logical sense. I'm not sure I buy the "it was a mistake" explanation.