Missile alert worker ‘sure it was real’

A HAWAIIAN state worker who sent a false incoming missile alert revealed he is devastated for causing mass panic - but was 100% sure it was real.

The mistake on January 13 sparked widescale panic and it took the authorities 38 minutes to correct it.

The worker has been fired and two top civilian officials from Hawaii’s Emergency Management Agency resigned.

The man, who did not want to be identified, said: “I felt sick afterwards. It was like a body blow.”

A preliminary federal probe concluded the scare was caused by human error and inadequate safeguards.