Across Hawaii on Sunday, people spoke about gathering their families for what they thought would be their last moments, until the “false alarm” announcement went out. The governor’s aides said the state moved quickly to inform people that it was a false alarm in posts on Twitter and on Facebook. “Upon confirming yesterday’s message was a false alarm, Uspacom Public Affairs worked quickly to inform the public through traditional and social media channels,” Cmdr. “The Pacific Command first told Hawaii media that there was no approaching ballistic missile at 8:23 a.m. — about 13 minutes after Hawaii sent out the alert. Ms. Hanabusa’s concern that the false alarm might discourage people from visiting the islands was shared by state tourism officials.

Source: New York Times January 15, 2018 01:07 UTC