False emergency alerts warning of an incoming ballistic missile terrified Hawaii residents on Saturday. Could it happen here?
The head of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency said it's unlikely.
"[An alert] would go through at least a half-dozen people before it goes out to the public," director Chris Rodriguez said.
He said there is no single button in the D.C. Joint All Hazards Operations Center that could send such an alert.
D.C. officials have identified more than 20 potential threats and hazards. Prewritten alert messages are on standby should they be needed.
D.C. was the first jurisdiction in the United States to test the ability to send an alert to a specific region of a city, officials said.
They are set to hold a drill this spring.
