Global Courant
SEOUL — The South Korean government is to review the country’s emergency warning system, Yonhap news agency reported Thursday, after a misreport related to North Korea’s satellite launch this week sparked confusion and complaints.
The Office for Government Policy Coordination, Interior Ministry and Seoul metropolitan government will discuss improvements, the report said, citing a senior government official.
The alert system will be updated to provide information such as “who, when, where, what, how and why,” to allow for a calm response from the public, a presidential official said.
The text message sent to Seoul residents on Wednesday morning was widely criticized for being unhelpful, telling people to prepare for evacuation without specifying where to go and what the danger was.
In another warning shortly afterwards, the Ministry of Security said the previous one was a mistake.
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon apologized for the confusion over the city’s warnings but defended the decision to send one as a precaution, citing public safety. REUTERS
South Korea to review emergency warning system after fiasco
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