Disaster warning centre apologises after wrong alert broadcast

The National Disaster Warning Centre in Thailand issued an apology after inadvertently transmitting the incorrect message during a routine weekly test of its alert system on September 9. The test, typically conducted every Wednesday at 8am, involves the center broadcasting the Thai national anthem, which allows related agencies to verify the functionality of their equipment.

On this occasion, however, the centre inadvertently transmitted an M10 signal before the anthem. The M10 signal is typically used to declare that a dangerous situation has concluded, informing the public that conditions have returned to normal and instructing them to resume their activities as per official announcements. Following the transmission of the erroneous M10 signal, the centre resumed its normal protocol by broadcasting the national anthem.

The center expressed regret over the mistake, stating that it may have caused concern among individuals in certain regions. The centre also pledged to review and enhance its operational procedures to avert a recurrence of such an error. In April of the previous year, the Thai Cabinet allocated 370 million baht to bolster the nation's early warning systems in response to criticism following the earthquake in Myanmar.

At that time, the alert system's capacity was limited to sending SMS messages to 100,000 to 200,000 phone numbers simultaneously, with each batch taking approximately 15 minutes to deliver. The increased budget was allocated towards enhancing disaster monitoring and preparedness, encompassing earthquake and landslide risks. This included 310.84 million baht for the installation of 120 rock-movement monitoring devices, 40.35 million baht for landslide information systems, and 19.19 million baht to bolster landslide preparedness in collaboration with partner agencies.