NYC officials ripped for sending earthquake emergency alerts nearly 25 minutes after the fact
NY Post
New York City officials were battered by critics Friday after a 4.8 magnitude quake rocked the Big Apple — but it took nearly 25 minutes for an emergency alert to go out.
The quake struck near Lebanon, New Jersey, around 10:23 a.m. and was promptly felt across the tri-state area, according to the US Geological Survey.
But New York City didn’t issue an emergency Notify NYC phone alert about the tremor until 10:47 a.m.
It then also issued a WE Alert, or Wireless Emergency, message to phones at 11:02 .a.m., while the state’s WE Alert went out at 11:05 a.m. — and some residents reported still getting alerts about an earthquake after noon.
Zachary Iscol, head of the city’s Office of Emergency Management, told reporters at a press conference afterward Friday that the Adams administration needed to confirm the quake before alerting residents.
“We also need to make sure we’re putting out the proper guidance. The 20 minutes is very, very fast for a public notification,” Iscol said.
