The Reality – Weather Sirens Are Outdated Alert Systems
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DAVE’S WORLD
By David Howell
I think it must be my fault, this strange pattern of severe storms that erupt each Saturday spawning tornadoes in Mississippi. I must have complained one too many times about the Saturday storm cycle disrupting spring activities such as gardening, hunting or fishing. You won’t hear another complaint from me.
Thankfully Yalobusha County dodged the bullet – again – as Mississippi seems to be the new tornado alley. With each outbreak of severe weather, there is always a lot of feedback across the state about weather sirens functioning (or not). I started asking questions and it seems that weather sirens are an outdated alert system. I learned that weather sirens are primarily designed to serve as outdoor emergency notification systems and were never intended to warn you indoors. I also learned that weather sirens are extremely problematic.
A tornado touched down in Senatobia on April 3, and city officials there reported afterwards that the early warning sirens did not function properly. Weather-related interference was cited as the likely factor. The Grenada Sheriff’s Department reported problems with weather sirens during the storms Saturday. There were reports that a weather siren on Market Street did not work Saturday, and another one at Tillatoba also did not sound.
Google “problems with weather sirens” and you will see that problems occur frequently all over the country.
Yalobusha EMA Directors Stewart Spence and Jarred Logan told me there are 11 tornado sirens in the county, five in the City of Water Valley and two in the Town of Coffeeville. The EMA Directors reported that it is not unusual for a siren or sirens to malfunction. The sirens in the county have battery back-ups in case of a power outage, but what happens if the batteries fail between routine testings? The sirens in Water Valley do not have battery back-ups and will not work during a power outage.
During most severe weather events, Spence tracks the storms from house using multiple sources while Logan positions strategically in the county as a storm spotter. They communicate to ensure Logan is not in the direct path of a storm.
Saturday afternoon, Logan staged on the south side of the county and tried to trigger the weather sirens at Oakland and Tillatoba as the storm cell approached. The storm was between Logan and the radio repeater used to communicate with the weather sirens, and he wasn’t able to trigger the sirens. Spence was able to trigger the weather sirens from a different location in the county, but there was still a report that someone who lives in the vicinity of the Tillatoba siren did not hear it. Logan said new backup batteries had been installed at Tillatoba and it was tested two weeks earlier and it was working.
They believe weather interference was the likely culprit. The repeater that communicates with the sirens across the county is located at the Beat One County Barn located south of Water Valley. Spence, Logan or a dispatcher use a radio to transmit to the repeater that communicates with each siren in the county.
The only other option to trigger a siren is to be within a mile of it and the radio can communicate directly without going through the repeater.
Remember, testing for weather sirens is always conducted on clear days to keep from scaring people. Logan explained that when sirens are triggered during a storm, the conditions are far from ideal.
“They are just not 100 percent reliable,” Logan explained.
Another problem is that Logan or Spence have no idea if the siren sounds when they trigger it unless a fireman (most of the county’s sirens are located at fire departments) or someone who lives nearby calls them.
I guess we should pause here to say I’m not arguing to eliminate weather sirens. Instead we should not depend on the sirens. Just about every cell phone has an option to provide an alert before severe weather. Another way to make sure you receive weather alerts is to sign up for CodeRED, a free service provided by Yalobusha County that delivers advanced notifications of severe weather events as soon as a bulletin is issued by the National Weather Service. This system delivers voice calls, text messages or emails within the direct path of the storm to subscribed users.
Spence and Logan explained that land line notifications are available from CodeRED, another option especially for elderly residents who many not use a cell phone. You can sign up online at www.montgomerycountyms.com (click the CodeRED Weather Warning button on the top right). I know this is a Montgomery County website, but it is the easiest way to access the service online.
And if you are like me and struggle with tech issues, there is another way. Call Robin Harrington at the Yalobusha County E911 office in the Coffeeville courthouse at (662) 675-2556 and she will hook you up.
