Photo/Illutration A J-Alert warning is displayed on a TV screen on the morning of Oct. 4. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Quite a few people must have been rattled by the sudden blare of the J-Alert missile alarm on the morning of Oct. 4, particularly residents of areas where the warning was unnecessary.

Any warning system that loses the trust of the public loses its effectiveness. The government needs to thoroughly examine what went wrong and explore how best to improve the system.

North Korea has been continuing ballistic missile launches with abnormal frequency this year.

In the Oct. 4 launch, Tokyo considered the possibility of the missile being aimed at Japan and issued the J-Alert warning.

But as it turned out, the projectile flew over an area near Aomori Prefecture before falling outside Japan's exclusive economic zone in the Pacific Ocean. No damage has been reported.

The J-Alert system was introduced in 2007 upon the enactment of the civil protection law as a part of national contingency legislation.

It automatically activates the municipal emergency radio system for disaster prevention and relief, sounding an alarm from outdoor speakers as well as sending text messages to handheld electronic devices such as smartphones.

The system is also used to inform the public of threats and emergencies such as earthquakes and tsunami.

The warning against a North Korean missile launch was issued for the first time since September 2017. The system has been activated five times to warn the public of North Korean missile launches.

In response to the Oct. 4 launch at around 7:22 a.m., the government issued the J-Alert at 7:27 a.m. to Hokkaido and far-flung islands of Tokyo.

Two minutes later, the alarm was issued to Aomori Prefecture and again to the Tokyo islands. Then, at 7:42 a.m., the government notified Hokkaido and Aomori Prefecture that the missile had passed over them and headed toward the Pacific Ocean.

Although those islands of Tokyo were entirely off the missile's flight path, the J-Alert was issued in error. This occurred because after the alert was sent to those islands during a past drill, they should have been deleted from the list of destinations, but they remained undeleted due to a system malfunction.

That sort of error undermines the reliability of the J-Alert system, and it must not be allowed to recur.

In addition, problems have also been reported regarding the municipal emergency radio system for disaster prevention that works in coordination with the J-Alert system.

An extensive examination is in order to ensure speedy transmission of accurate information to residents.

The system also leaves something to be desired with respect to the timing and the content of the warnings sent.

On Oct. 4, Aomori Prefecture was initially not included among the warning's recipients and did not receive it until just about the time the missile was flying over the prefecture.

Some locals also complained that the J-Alert instructed them to "take refuge indoors or underground," but everything was happening so quickly, they didn't know what to do.

And it was not until 13 minutes after the missile had flown past Aomori that the residents were notified of the fact. That's not "timely" information, is it?

When the J-Alert was issued, all TV stations immediately interrupted their regular programming and switched to emergency broadcasting.

But even after reporting that the missile had fallen into the Pacific, some broadcasters continued to show tickers, urging viewers to go to a "windowless room" or "basement," while others repeatedly showed footage of a North Korean military parade.

Since reporting in an emergency requires broadcasters to rely on the government’s official releases, this invariably invites the risk of generating public opinion that echoes the government's intent.

A close examination is also needed to determine what sort of reporting is appropriate in such circumstances, so that broadcasters will know better when a similar situation arises again.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 12

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