FACT CHECK: New Mexico Emergency Broadcast Is Actually From 90’s Video Game.
A video shared on Twitter alleges a New Mexico research facility caused an Emergency Alert System broadcast warning.
US government just released a new EAS message.
Many people say that army helicopters and fighter aircrafts are heading to a Black Mesa research facility, located in New Mexico. No one knows what exactly is happening, everyone is being evacuated who is near the facility. pic.twitter.com/fc9ZConoHO— ꑭNick0ꑭ (@BorodaFromMiami) June 19, 2023
Verdict: False
The video was not broadcasted on behalf of New Mexico, a spokesperson for the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management confirmed in an email to Check Your Fact.
Fact Check:
New Mexico is expected to have the highest UV index in the continental United States, according to a New Mexico news outlet KRQE. The National Weather Service warned that people in the state may get the quickest sunburns in the country, according to another local news organization KOAT.
The Twitter post claims the U.S. government broadcasted an Emergency Alert System broadcast and a New Mexico research facility is to blame. The video shows a TV screen with the words “emergency broadcast system” while the alert sound plays before a robotic voice warns of an evacuation.
“US government just released a new EAS message,” the caption reads. “Many people say that army helicopters and fighter aircrafts are heading to a Black Mesa research facility, located in New Mexico. No one knows what exactly is happening, everyone is being evacuated who is near the facility.”
The video is miscaptioned, however. Black Mesa is not a real research facility, but instead comes from the video game “Half Life” from Valve Software. The video game follows a scientist after an alien invasion at the Black Mesa Research Facility.
“The New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management did not broadcast the message in this twitter account,” a spokesperson for New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said in an email to Check Your Fact. “We believe the video is a hoax.”
Check Your Fact has reached out to Valve for comment and will update this piece accordingly if one is received.
