The state Emergency Management Division says it will investigate the cause of today’s faulty bimonthly test of the tsunami alert and warning system in in Clallam and Jefferson counties and two other coastal counties that sent out erroneous messages about a volcanic eruption and hazardous material spill.
Preliminary reports from the noon test indicated the warning towers did not play the prescribed program of Westminster chimes and verbal message that stated a test of the tsunami system was being conducted. The system features 50 sirens which have been installed in Pacific, Grays Harbor, Jefferson and Clallam counties and are tested on the first Monday of alternate months.
“A contractor was on scene for the test and will recheck all of the system’s operations and programming,” said John Schelling, division earthquake program manager.
“The system has operated without error for the past year. Backup procedures remain in place to operate this system while corrections are made.”
Bob Hamlin, program manager for the Jefferson County Department of Emergency Management, said the message was “unexpected by everyone” and resulted in several phone calls to 9-1-1, City Hall, Emergency Management and others.
Some callers stated that the voice message blasted from the system towers referred to several different hazards.
“It was a pre-recorded message announcing information about a volcano and possible hazardous materials in the area,” said Hamlin in a statement.
“I spoke with officials from the state Emergency Management Division who told me they had originally planned to quickly do a second message to refute the error, but decided it would only confuse people more and subsequently opted not to do it,” he said. “The message did not emanate from Jefferson County.”
This was an unfortunate error, and could result in lack of confidence in the system, a later Jefferson County statement said.
