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HALIFAX — As an active shooter was on the loose in Nova Scotia Sunday morning, the U.S. Consulate in Halifax sent emailed alerts to its citizens warning of the danger at a time when the RCMP was using Twitter to communicate the news.

Questions have been raised as to why no emergency alerts were transmitted to Nova Scotians’ cellphones and television screens as a rampage was underway that would leave 23 dead, including the gunman.

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When Premier Stephen McNeil was asked Wednesday why the province didn’t issue an emergency alert based on the Mounties’ Twitter feed, he said emergency officials couldn’t act until the RCMP had prepared an approved message.

“That’s the protocol in place when it comes to the (Emergency Management Office),” the premier told a news conference.

“The lead agency is the one that has to put the message together. We would not go from what’s happening on Twitter …. No message was received, even though EMO had reached out a number of times throughout the morning to the RCMP.”