Thousands of Texans Complain to FCC Over Early Morning Alarms on Their Phones After Shooting of Small Town Chief

Cell phones across Texas buzzed shortly before 5 a.m. Friday morning after a Blue Alert was issued for a 33-year-old man who was wanted out of Memphis, Texas, in the Panhandle over the shooting of the police chief. The consumer complaints to the Federal Communications Commission about the alert have been coming since.

The FCC says it’s received about 4,500 consumer complaints about the Texas Blue Alert as of Monday morning, WFAA reports.

Statewide AMBER and Blue Alerts are supposed to be sent between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m., including on holidays and weekends, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety’s frequently asked questions on emergency alerts, but AMBER and Blue Alerts initiated by Texas regional alert networks could differ.

Memphis Police Chief Rex Plant was seriously injured in the Thursday night shooting. He was released from the hospital Monday, EverythingLubbock reports.

The man wanted for the shooting, 33-year-old Seth Altman remains at large.