GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Chaos throughout Hawaii Saturday, as an emergency alert stated the threat of a missile attack.
Megan Hout of Green Bay is staying at a hotel in Kapolei, “It was kind of a little bit of chaos, people were crying trying to find each other.”
Hout is in Hawaii for her cousin’s wedding.
She says, through widespread panic, hotel workers directed guests to take shelter, “It was like every minute that went by you were kind of bracing yourself, because it was so specific, that this is not a drill.”
The message, sent by the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, was later deemed a false alarm.
But that correction took time.
“There wasn’t any information on the TV and we didn’t have a radio, till 40-minutes later,” explained St. Norbert Geology Professor, Tim Flood.
Flood, and a group of St. Norbert students are in Hawaii for a school trip, “We decided the garage was the best place to be. We had all our bags around us for protection, our travel bags.”
With some students, like Nicholas Agen of Kaukauna, calling their loved ones for what he thought may be the last time, “A little part of my heart sank, and I decided I have to probably call my parents.”
Both, Huot and Flood say it’s an experience they’ll never forget.
“My mom, and I immediately started hugging each other,” said Hout.
“It brought prospective to life for all of us, in terms of how fragile life can be, and how quickly it can change,” said Flood.
The St. Norbert students are scheduled to be back in Wisconsin Monday.
