GET OUT! NO, STAY.

An evacuation alert intended for areas affected by the Rock Fire and newly developing Cinder Complex was mistakenly sent to residents throughout Inyo County Friday evening.

The alert was intended for evacuation zones near Big Pine, including areas impacted by the Rock Fire and the Cinder Complex, a group of lightning-caused fires that started Friday near the perimeter of the Rock Fire. Instead, residents in Bishop, Round Valley and Paradise also received the notification.

The City of Bishop and Bishop Police Department posted at 8 p.m. that the alert “appears to have been intended for areas of Inyo County that are currently under evacuation orders but was inadvertently distributed to the Bishop area.”

“There are NO evacuation orders or evacuation warnings in effect for the City of Bishop,” the city stated.

The Inyo County Sheriff’s Office later confirmed the alert was sent accidentally, stating that “Inyo County accidentally sent out a county-wide evacuation order.” Officials said some alerts were also distributed outside Inyo County due to a technical error.

The Sheriff’s Office directed residents to check Ready Inyo County, the Genasys emergency map or Watch Duty for current evacuation information and apologized for the confusion caused by the erroneous alert.

As of Thursday, The Rock Fire had burned approximately 12,008 acres and was 62% contained, according to CAL FIRE. The Cinder Complex, a group of lightning-caused fires that started July 24 near Tinemaha Road and Taboose Creek, had burned 2,784 acres and was 39% contained.