Springdale officials say their emergency weather alert system is fully functional, despite a weather alert telling local residents Tuesday that a tsunami warning was in effect for the area.
The false alert went out to a few hundred local subscribers because of a glitch in the system that did not filter out alerts from elsewhere in the country, said Mark Gutte, IT director for the City of Springdale. The filter area was mistakenly left blank, whereas it usually filters out any alerts that do not affect local subscribers, Gutte said.
More than 20,000 people are signed up for Springdale’s emergency alert system, which warns against severe weather, bomb threats, manhunts, road closures and other similar situations, according to city officials.
The alert system has been in place for a few years and is ready for the upcoming severe weather season that may include severe thunderstorms and tornadoes, Gutte said.
