ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The leader of the company behind the emergency alert that was erroneously sent to Florida residents' phones early Thursday morning apologized in a newly published letter.
"If you or anyone you know was awakened by a test alert on your phone at 4:45am ET on Thursday, April 20th, I’m sorry," Everbridge CEO David Wagner wrote. "It should not have happened."
Many people probably recall the moment when an emergency alert message popped up on their phone — and blared a loud tone. The message read: "TEST - This is a TEST of the Emergency Alert System. No action is required."
In a letter published Monday, Wagner said the early morning wake-up call was a mistake.
"Essentially, human errors caused the alert to go out, in violation of a number of routine precautionary steps that should have been followed prior to the release of any emergency notification," Wagner wrote. "Customers who operate our systems run monthly tests, required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), on mobile and broadcast networks to keep you informed.
"In this instance, our system delivered the message as designed – that’s the good news. The bad news is a live message was inadvertently sent to millions of residents’ cellphones, instead of a notification sent only to Florida broadcasters. That notification should not have been sent to you."
A spokesperson with the Florida Division of Emergency Management said the state severed ties with the software company, but Wagner said it will continue working with the agency "to provide them with everything they need to keep you safe."
FDEM in a statement to WKMG-TV said it already sent a notice to terminate its contract.
"Our job at Everbridge is to give you and all of Florida’s emergency departments, at the state and county level, peace of mind so you can sleep through the night knowing you will be awoken and alerted if there is a hurricane or an imminent life-threatening event," Wagner wrote. "The last thing we want to do is wake you up when you should be asleep."