Evacuation Alert Sent In Minnesota Was 'Error'

ITASCA COUNTY, MN — Authorities in central Minnesota say an evacuation alert sent out Wednesday morning was an error. The alert came from Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and officials said the false alarm led to confusion and concern.

Homeland Security tests its alert system weekly; but on Wednesday, the message was publicly distributed by mistake. Making matters worse, the part of the message that says "this is a test" was cut off, according to authorities.

"There is no need to evacuate," the Itasca County Sheriff's Office said. "They had a glitch in their system. HSEM is aware of the mistake."

One person wrote on the sheriff's Facebook page that they "stopped in the process to driving my child to school" as a result of the alert. "Yikes"

The false evacuation alert was also sent in error to portions of St. Louis County.

According to Homeland Security, the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) system "is used to warn the public about dangerous weather, missing children, and other critical situations through alerts on cell phones."

Alerts are sent to participating wireless providers, which deliver the alerts to phones in geo-targeted areas. WEA alerts feature a unique tone and vibration.

In 2018, Homeland Security sent out a "Presidential Alert" test using the WEA.