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An emergency evacuation signal broadcast in error throughout Seoul over a North Korean rocket launch sparked widespread alarm on Wednesday, crippling internet services and sparking concerns that the government could not be trusted to handle a true crisis.
The message, delivered at 6:41 a.m. local time to all mobile phones in Seoul, stated: “Citizens, please prepare to evacuate and allow children and the elderly to evacuate first.”
The warning did not clarify why citizens should evacuate or where they should go; Seoul has long maintained a network of underground bomb shelters, but they have never been deployed in an emergency in living memory.
Naver, South Korea’s largest internet portal, told AFP that the notice caused a five-minute outage on its network.
After around 20 minutes of misunderstanding, the authorities revoked the advisory.
“We regret to inform you that the alarm sent at 0641 was incorrectly issued,” a second notice stated.
The reversal sparked outrage and dissatisfaction, with some calling for Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon to quit on social media.
However, he was left “speechless and outraged” by the revision.
North Korea launched a rocket carrying a military spy satellite, which crashed into the sea, triggering the warning.
The South Korean military eventually acknowledged that the plane passed over waters west of the peninsula, not over Seoul.
“It’s as if Japan issued a shelter-in-place advisory every time South Korea launched a spacecraft.”
The Seoul authorities, though, defended the alert.
Mayor Oh stated during a press conference that the city government “judged that immediate action was necessary” since North Korea had launched the rocket to the south.
Oh stated that the city would improve its warning system in order to avoid public confusion and provide suitable guidance.
‘I nearly passed out.’
Many South Koreans expressed their dissatisfaction with the government’s poor messaging on Twitter.
“They didn’t tell us why we needed to evacuate, nor did they tell us where we needed to go,” user @duckdo_1226 commented.
“I think if a real war breaks out, I’ll just end up dead.”
Another Seoul resident, @pedestrian_1234, tweeted that the evacuation order caused widespread fear.
The Korean War of 1950-1953 ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, and the North and South are still formally at war.
All able-bodied South Korean men are obligated to serve 18 months in the military.
According to Minseon Ku, a political science expert at Ohio State University, the warning farce highlights South Korea’s ongoing security issue.
It was “unfortunate because, given that South Korea is technically at war right now, it demonstrated a potential civil security loophole that, if left unaddressed, could pose real and greater risk,” she said.
“Hopefully, this blunder will serve as a timely reminder to local and national governments that strong and dependable civil security takes precedence over all other security concerns.”
Ankit Panda, a US-based expert, believes the error should spark a probe and review of South Korea’s standard operating procedures for missile incidents.
“False warnings are especially dangerous during times of crisis, but they also undermine public trust during times of peace,” he told AFP.
