Evacuation alert mistakenly sent to LA County residents

A wireless emergency evacuation alert was sent to residents across Los Angeles County. However, it was meant for people in the order and warning zones for the Kenneth Fire in Woodland Hills. 

"I have been informed the evacuation warning that many of us just received on our phones was mistakenly issued countywide due to a technical error," County Supervisor Janice Hahn said. 

In a later message, emergency officials clarified that it was for the Kenneth Fire only. 

"An evacuation order for residents near the Kenneth Fire currently burning in West Hills was mistakenly issued to nearly 10 million County residents along with some residents of neighboring counties" Kevin McGowan, Director of the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management. "This warning was intended only for residents of Calabasas and Agoura Hills and those within the West Hills community of Los Angeles."

Officials said they tried to make the alert as compact as they could, however, varying factors such as where the phone is registered may have affected the outreach. 

"We understand that these wildfires have created great anxiety, hardship and distress among our residents, and we are committed to sharing accurate information," McGowan said. "For updates on wildfires currently burning in LA County, including evacuation information, please visit lacounty.gov/emergency."    

An estimated 331,335 people are affected by evacuation advisory because of the fires: 139,524 are under evacuation warnings and 191,811 are under evacuation orders. For perspective, 331,335 people can fill SoFi Stadium three times over.