Missouri Highway Patrol says ‘Gotham City’ emergency alert about Joker’s car was a mistake

The Missouri State Highway Patrol is scrambling to take back an emergency alert it sent out about a Batman villain.

“Emergency Alert: GOTHAM CITY MO PURPLE/GREEN 1978 DODGE 3700GT MO UKIDME,” the strange notification said at around 5pm on Tuesday.

Some recipients immediately knew what this meant.

“The Joker is 100% on the loose in Kansas City,” one Twitter user wrote.

Gotham City is the fictional metropolis where Batman lives. The superhero’s primary nemesis, the Joker, drives a purple and green 1978 Dodge Monaco in the Tim Burton film Batman.

Minutes later, the MISHP pleaded with Missourians to disregard the message.

“This was meant to be a test message, THERE WAS NO ALERT,” the Patrol tweeted.

The agency also posted an explanation on its website.

“Today, a routine test of Missouri’s Blue Alert system was inadvertently sent to wireless devices statewide,” the MISHP said in a statement. “During the test, an option was incorrectly selected, allowing the message to be disseminated to the public. There is no Emergency Alert at this time. The Patrol appreciates the public’s understanding and support of the Emergency Alert program.”

Not everyone was so understanding.

“How and why did this happen?” KMBC anchor Matt Flener replied to MISHP’s tweet. “This seems like a major error, especially at a time of heightened alert. Who should be held accountable for this?”

Others took the situation less seriously.

“Come on,” one user replied to Mr Flener. “Just have fun and chill out. Anyone could realize it wasn’t real. We don’t have a Gotham MO lol.”

Others thought the Gotham alert was no laughing matter.

“Some users are older and have no idea what the Joker reference is,” one concerned citizen wrote. “Not funny.”