Thousands in Summit County woke up to emergency alerts urging residents to shelter in place, remain indoors and turn off any heating and air conditioning systems, noting “This is not a test.” The message included the phrase “INSERT GEOGRAPHIC AREA due to INSERT HAZARD.”

Ultimately, Summit County communications director David Rossi said in an email on Friday, July 14, that the alert was sent on accident around 7:50 a.m. on Sunday, July 9. It was followed up with another emergency alert less than 10 minutes later that clarified the location and reason for the alert, which was related to police activity in the area.

The messages were meant to communicate a shelter in place order for Summit Cove after two law enforcement officers shot and killed 18-year-old Charlie Foster. The shooting happened after law enforcement officers responded to a report of “an armed individual wandering in the neighborhood waving a firearm and banging on residents doors,” according to a Summit County Sheriff’s Office news released.

Monica Vasquez, Foster’s aunt, described the weapon as a BB gun and said Foster was experiencing mental illness during an interview with Summit Daily News following the shooting. Summit County Sheriff Jaime FitzSimons said Foster had interactions with the Systemwide Mental Assessment Response Team in the three weeks prior to the shooting, according to previous Summit Daily News reports.

The Sheriff’s Office release said Foster “failed repeatedly to comply with verbal commands given to him, pointed a handgun at a deputy and officer and was subsequently shot.”

Rossi stated the inaccurate emergency alert was a standard template created by the emergency manager for communicating environmental hazards, which is why it included information about HVAC systems and windows.

Since the incident, Rossi’s email said the template “has been updated in the system to try and prevent this type of messaging error from occurring in the future,” but the statement did not provide further details about actions taken since Sunday.

The alerts were sent using iPAWS, an integrated public alert and warning system used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The system does not provide analytics about the number of people who receive each notification, but the majority of people with cell phones located in Summit County should have received the messages.

“Wireless Emergency Alerts consistently present ‘bleed over’ whereby people outside the intended geographic area receive the alerts,” according to a statement provided by Rossi, noting the alerts may be sent as far as 10 miles beyond Summit County’s borders.

If a similar incomplete message is sent in the future, the county advises residents and visitors follow the instructions shared in the alert before waiting on more instructions. Residents and visitors can also monitor official social media accounts such as those run by the Sheriff’s Office, local fire protection districts — like Summit Fire & EMS and Red, White & Blue Fire Protection District, Summit County Government, local towns and “trusted news media,” according to the county’s statement.