What is a blue alert, and why are they issued hundreds of miles away? – Houston Public Media

AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File

Many Texans woke up in a fright Friday morning.

33-year-old Seth Altman was on the run after shooting and injuring a police officer, according to ear-splitting emergency alerts that appeared on your smartphone around 4:50 a.m. But Altman— “wanted for involvement in the killing or serious injury of a law enforcement officer”— was last seen hundreds of miles away from the cities that were torpedoed by the early morning alerts.

The Department of Public Safety develops and issues blue alerts across the state when a person involved in the injury of a law enforcement officer is not immediately located.

Altman was last seen around 11 p.m. Thursday, about six hours before the blue alert was issued, and the search is still underway for the man. Police Chief Rex Plant is currently in stable condition, according to local news reports.

Texans have since resorted to social media to vent their frustrations with the state’s emergency alert system. The Department of Public Safety did not return several phone calls and emails seeking comment.

What they’re saying

Yes, we definitely needed a “Blue Alert” waking up the entire state of Texas at 4:50 AM for an incident that occured an 8 hour drive from me. They really just told me to look out for a middle aged white man wearing Blue Jeans…in Texas…

— CR (@CWRacing71) October 4, 2024

Texans voiced concerns about the alerts, raising questions about the state’s use of the alert system, and the necessity to send them out hundreds of miles away.

Emergency and missing persons alerts can be turned off in a smartphone’s settings.

i have never seen the state of texas more unified than they are this morning over the blue alert.

there is no man vs woman. no old vs young. just a state full of people angry at the unnecessary wake up call.

— Becky ♿️🇵🇸🍉 a tortured poet (@BeccaLizz) October 4, 2024

According to the Federal Communications Commission, the geographic precision of wireless emergency alerts are “continuously improving.”

“As of December 2019, participating wireless providers must geographically target alerts to technologically compatible phones even more: they must deliver the alerts to the area specified by the alert originator with no more than a 1/10 of a mile overshoot,” according to the FCC.

The Warning, Alert and Response Network Act directed the FCC to adopt technical and operational requirements for the emergency alerts system.

No better alarm clock than a blue alert amirite pic.twitter.com/kgZetYAU5t

— Avery Tomasco (@averytomascowx) October 4, 2024

What is a blue alert?

Blue Alerts can be transmitted to television and radio stations, cellphones, and overhead highway signs. They can also be issued when a person poses an imminent threat to law enforcement, or when an officer is missing in the line of duty, according to the National Blue Alert Network.

Congress passed the Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu National Blue Alert Act in 2015 after two New York City police officers were killed in an ambush attack the year prior.

In Texas, law enforcement agencies must provide the Texas Department of Public Safety with a detailed description of the missing suspect and any available portion of a suspect’s license plate number. The department is then responsible for confirming accuracy of the information and immediately issuing the notifications across the state.

The alerts are terminated when the suspect is apprehended, if the missing person has left the state and if the department receives evidence that the alert system will no longer aid in the apprehension of the suspect, according to legislation documents.

The Hall County Sheriff’s Office did not return phone calls seeking comment Friday.