Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, slammed President Trump on Saturday for “taking too long” to quell escalating tensions with North Korea, minutes after a false ballistic missile warning was sent to residents of her home state.
Gabbard said her constituents “live with the reality of this message popping up on their phones” at any moment because of the rising conflict between the U.S. and Pyongyang.
“Donald Trump is taking too long,” she told CNN. “He's not taking this threat seriously. There's no time to waste.”
She added that is an urgent need for nuclear shelters.
Hawaii residents woke up Saturday morning to a message on their mobile phones and televisions warning of an “inbound” ballistic missile threat.
“Seek immediate shelter. This is not a drill,” read the emergency alert.
Within minutes, Gabbard sent out a tweet to say officials confirmed to her that there was no missile threat.
HAWAII - THIS IS A FALSE ALARM. THERE IS NO INCOMING MISSILE TO HAWAII. I HAVE CONFIRMED WITH OFFICIALS THERE IS NO INCOMING MISSILE. pic.twitter.com/DxfTXIDOQs— Tulsi Gabbard (@TulsiGabbard) January 13, 2018
U.S. Pacific Command later confirmed that the warning was sent in error. It was not immediately clear how the alert was approved.