Sandy residents who grabbed their phones Sunday afternoon and saw "EVACUATE NOW" can stand down. The alert was a mistake.

A glitch in Summit County's emergency alert system blasted a "GO" evacuation order to phones across at least six Utah counties, including all of Salt Lake County, at approximately 4:50 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 9. The message was meant only for residents near the Rocky Canyon Fire in Morgan and Summit counties, roughly 35 miles northeast of Salt Lake City.

No Sandy or Salt Lake County residents need to evacuate. Salt Lake County Emergency Management confirmed on Facebook that the alert was intended solely for residents in a specific area near Henefer.

"There was a glitch in the system when Summit County sent out their alert for Henefer," Morgan County officials wrote in a Facebook post Sunday, as reported by the Salt Lake Tribune.

What went wrong

When Summit County dispatched a legitimate evacuation order for zones near the fire, the alert system sent it far beyond the intended area. Sources differ on the precise technical cause: fire officials pointed to a glitch in the federal IPAWS alert system, while Uintah County Emergency Management attributed it to the Park City Dispatch system, according to ABC4. Emergency management agencies in Wasatch, Salt Lake, Uintah, Utah, Summit and Morgan counties all posted corrections afterward.

Utah Fire Info, the state's official wildfire account, posted on Facebook: "Please disregard that broader alert."

Fire officials apologized on behalf of Summit County, calling it "a system error" and acknowledging the confusion and distress the notifications caused.

The actual fire

The Rocky Canyon Fire is real and growing. It ignited Friday, Aug. 7, in Morgan County near East Canyon Reservoir and exploded to more than 13,000 acres by Sunday evening, driven by 40 mph winds. It remained 0% contained as of Sunday night, with about 120 personnel fighting the blaze, according to the Salt Lake Tribune and TownLift.

Legitimate evacuation orders apply only to residents from Whites Crossing to East Canyon Dam in Morgan County and between Hog Back Summit and West Henefer Road. Highway 66 was closed to all traffic, and Highway 65 from Henefer was also shut down.

The fire is not threatening Sandy or any part of Salt Lake County.

What Sandy residents should do

Fire officials urged all residents to keep their phones on and ensure emergency alerts remain active in notification settings. Despite the false alarm, wireless alerts remain the fastest way to receive verified evacuation information if conditions change.

Sandy City had not issued a separate public statement about the false alert as of Sunday evening.

The Rocky Canyon Fire's cause remains under investigation. No additional "GO" evacuation orders were expected overnight Sunday, though officials warned of erratic fire behavior near the actual burn area.