On Saturday, May 14 at 9 a.m., the City of Glendale conducted a planned evacuation exercise in coordination with the Chevy Chase Canyon Association. Due to a glitch in the messaging software, incorrect messaging was distributed throughout Los Angeles County. The City is working with its partners to investigate.

Silvio Lanzas, the City’s fire chief and deputy city manager, stressed that although the error in the message overshadowed the exercise itself, the importance of why these drills are conducted cannot be overstated. Lanzas thanked the residents of Chevy Chase Canyon who participated in the exercise and vowed to make the necessary corrections to future events. Lanzas apologized to anyone negatively affected by today’s message.

“As we saw last week in Laguna Niguel, our fire environment in Southern California is prime for another potentially active fire season,” he said. “Ensuring the community is prepared is key to keeping our residents safe.”