Home Care In South Pasadena, CA

Media Release

South Pasadena resident Ann Suk Wang, author of the acclaimed picture book The House Before Falling Into the Sea, will be at the South Pasadena Public Library on Saturday, December 13, 2025, for a special event featuring a live reading of her book, followed by a writing workshop. Wang will guide participants in a writing session focused on the importance of collecting and preserving family stories. This event begins at 10:30 a.m. and will take place in the Library Community Room at 1115 El Centro Street, South Pasadena, CA. The event is best suited for individuals aged 8 and up, including teens and adults.

The House Before Falling Into the Sea is a moving picture book inspired by Wang’s mother’s experiences during the Korean War. The story follows young Kyung Tak and her family as they open their seaside home to people fleeing the war. With nowhere else to turn, the home becomes refugees’ last hope “before falling into the sea.” The book is illustrated by Hanna Cha.

Books will be available for purchase and signing at the event. Join us for an inspiring morning of storytelling, history, and creative writing!

The South Pasadena Public Library is located at 1100 Oxley Street in South Pasadena. Visit the Library website at www.southpasadenaca.gov/library for information about services and programs. The Library is open Monday, Friday, Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. and Sunday 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Upon request made no later than four (4) business days before the event, the City will provide a reasonable accommodation for a qualified person with a disability to have equal access to the event. Please call (626) 403-7341 or fill out the City’s request form available at www.southpasadenaca.gov/ADA and email the form to Human Resources at [email protected].

At approximately 5:52 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 11, 2025, phones across Los Angeles County began receiving a wireless emergency alert test that had been issued by the city of South Pasadena.

The message read:

“This is a test of the South Pasadena WEA system. There is no emergency.”

The alert was meant only for an internal test of the city’s emergency-alert software, done by the city’s Public Safety staff.

According to city officials, it was not intended for the general public. Instead, the alert was transmitted to mobile devices throughout Los Angeles County, including areas such as Downtown L.A., Long Beach, and Redondo Beach — far beyond the intended test audience of South Pasadena.

South Pasadena city staff are investigating the cause of the error. The initial indication is that this was a human-error event rather than a software malfunction of the alert platform (identified as a system called “Finalsite” that the city uses).

The City of South Pasadena Issued an apology as part of a press release:

“We apologize for the mistake and any confusion it caused.”

Alerts sent through the Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) system are designed to reach mobile phones in a geographically targeted area to warn of emergencies. Incorrect targeting can lead to unnecessary alarm or mistrust in the alert system.

In January 2025, a much larger incident occurred when an evacuation warning meant for a localized fire zone (near the January 2025 Southern California wildfires) was mistakenly sent to nearly the entire county, sparking confusion and concern. This current event underscores ongoing issues in alert-system management.

Now What?

If you received the message: rest assured it was a test, there was no actual emergency, and the city has acknowledged the mistake. Residents in South Pasadena and across L.A. County will likely see increased scrutiny of future alerts — and may be well-advised to:

Press Release Published by The City of South Pasadena:

“At approximately 6:00 p.m. on November 11, a test alert message was mistakenly sent to mobile devices across Los Angeles County.

South Pasadena Public Safety staff were conducting a routine test of the City’s emergency alert software. The message was intended to remain within the test system but was unintentionally transmitted to the public.

City staff are investigating the cause of the error. We apologize for the mistake and any confusion it caused.”

Shortly before 6 p.m. Tuesday, phones across Los Angeles County lighted up with an emergency alert test, the latest example of challenges that government officials are experiencing with wireless emergency alert systems.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many people received the errant alert from South Pasadena, which read, “This is a test of the South Pasadena WEA system. There is no emergency.” South Pasadena officials said the test was supposed to remain in the city’s internal system but was mistakenly transmitted to the public. L.A. Times employees in Long Beach, downtown L.A. and Redondo Beach reported receiving the test.

Wireless emergency alerts are sent out through a partnership among the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Federal Communications Commission, cellphone providers and local officials, who geographically code the alerts so they appear on phones in areas affected by public safety warnings.

The errant test was reminiscent of an alert that was erroneously sent to 10 million phones across L.A. County during the January firestorms, warning them to prepare to evacuate due to a fire. The alert was meant to be sent only to a small number of phones near Calabasas.

On Tuesday evening, public safety staff with the city of South Pasadena were performing an internal test of the WEA system when the message was accidentally sent to phones across the county, city spokesperson Jennifer Colby said.

The cause of the erroneous alert is under investigation. However, it is currently believed to be the result of human error and not a malfunction of the platform called Finalsite that the city uses to send alerts, she said.

Colby said the city apologized for the inconvenience caused by the mistake.

Any fallout from the accidental test alert probably is minimal, but the ramifications of similar mistakes can be serious during active emergencies.

For example, the erroneous alert that went out during the January firestorms stoked panic and confusion. That was compounded by “echoing alerts,” when the message pinged repeatedly and seemingly at random.

A federal report that looked into that alert issue found that the company contracted by the county to send out the emergency alerts, Genasys, experienced a technical issue that caused the initial, widespread alert. The “echoing” alerts were a symptom of cellphone providers experiencing overload due to the high volume and long duration of the alerts, the report found.