The Alberta government has given a reasoning for the nine emergency alerts.
Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services Mike Ellis, gave the following explanation:
“During the test in Alberta on March 1 of the new national system, a glitch caused multiple test alert messages to be distributed to compatible devices," Ellis wrote in a statement.
"All partners in the National Public Alerting System are working with the Alberta Public Alerting team to identify and resolve the issue that caused these repeat alerts.
Many residents made jokes about the high number of alerts, while others claimed it interrupted meetings and disturbed those with special needs.
“We recognize the disruption these multiple alerts caused Albertans and are addressing this issue as quickly as possible to ensure the system works as intended so we can keep Albertans safe during an emergency,"
Ellis also wrote that incidents like this are exactly why they conduct tests of the system.
"We need to ensure that the system is working as intended during an actual emergency to protect Albertans."
The alert was sent over TV, radio, cellphones, and tablets.