The Texas Department of Public Safety quickly issued an apology, telling KENS5 the alert was caused by a technical malfunction while testing the system. The department said they're taking steps to make sure it doesn't happen again.
People on social media had a field day with the mistake. Screenwriter and Chucky creator Don Mancini said on Twitter, "please find them."
Many people found the mistake funny, but probably not the woman who lived at the address listed on the alert. The New York Times called the telephone number for the address, and the woman who answered exasperatedly said she's aware of the mistake and hung up.
Malfunctions of emergency alerts have wreaked havoc before. In 2018, an employee for Hawaii's emergency management office sent out a warning that ballistic missiles were bound for the island. Tensions between the United States and North Korea were high at the time, and the worker thought the message, which turned out to be for a test, was real.
Chucky kidnapping his own doll-kid is not as serious as a false missile alert, of course. The technical error, though, could be free marketing for a planned Chucky TV series. According to Deadline, the show will begin production later this year and will air on both the USA Network and Syfy. Come to think of it, this makes a good episode.
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