Warning sirens effective

[Whelen Rules]

While most of us still believe outdoor warning sirens are an effective way to warn those outdoors of impending tornadoes, severe weather, or other disasters the debate in Tennessee continues to be that with today's technology with access to t.v., radio, weather radios, reverse 911, cell phone text messaging and internet, computers, etc. that sirens are not necessary. While I agree that there are many forms of warning people with out sirens however, the sirens can still be incorporated in a combo system to warn people. How do you guys feel about this debate?

[Alasiren1977]

I live in Tennessee, and I have never seen so many a#% backwards people in my life. They always say that sirens are old technology, but isnt most anything?! The car engine is old technology yet we are still using it, so that crap that Tennessee likes to hand out that sirens are old, ineffective and expensive....Well lets just say that this state will continue to get hit by tornadoes, and without a variety of warning methods (including outdoor warning sirens) this state will suffer a higher death rate than other states that have them.

[djscrizzle]

A siren can notify thousands of people Instantly... and outdoors... and even young children/elderly people usually will know that a situation 'isn't good' and take action faster than tv, radio, internet, or R-911.

[r4tbolts]

Sirens in Tennesse in many cases will alert people indoors or out in most of small cities. Got to rembember before pagers the volunteer fire dept was alerted by a fire siren day or night. I can recall a couple of times while staying at my grandparents the town siren sounding for a fire at 2 in the morning and being woke up from a dead sleep when the siren cut loose.

Houses in the small older towns aren't all that insulated and are quite old. Sirens carry good indoors in that type situation. I would still have a weather radio but it's nonsense to think sirens can't be heard indoors in these small towns. Even in places like Memphis I bet many will wake up when the t-bolts cut loose.

[Melvin Potts]

I have to agree with Whelen Rules. TVs, radios, etc. should certainly be turned on when severe weather occurs or watches are issued. We shouldn't rely on sirens alone; however, they serve the purpose well.

As for hearing them indoors..I can mention lots of instances in which that is the case.

The 2001 atop the Brentwood(TN) Municipal Building can be heard inside buildings in the Maryland Farms office park where I work.

Several friends in Cobb County, GA have told me that they can hear the sirens inside their houses. Some of these instances were in wee hours of the morning when they were in bed!

Friends at 2 churches in Cobb(one in Marietta & one in Acworth) told me that they heard sirens plainly during Good Friday services..when Cobb got hit with severe weather.

Friend at church told me of hearing the ATI at Hillsboro High School in Nashville one afternoon while shopping at Green Hills Mall across the road.

I've heard the ATI at Crieve Hall School in Nashville a few times during severe weather if the wind was blowing towards house; also had the TV on during those times to keep track of what was happening.

It's true that a siren system costs $$...but that would be offset by the lives that it might save.

[Robert Gift]

No new sirens.

Keep old sirens in use.

Sirens cannot be heard in better sound-proofed vehicles with stereos always operating. (Drivers should be able to see threatening weather.)

As residential neighborhoods expand, sirens become too far away from the new areas and are not heard inside newer homes with better insulation and TVs and stereos often operating.

[Charlie Davidson]

No new sirens.

Keep old sirens in use.

Murfresburo HAS no sirens, neither does most counties in TN. We only have three county wide, and we need many more.

My thought on this:

Sirens are a great thing to have, for example: People here in TN (well, most of us) love the outdoors and we swim, golf, camp out, etc. If you're away from home and have no clue that the weather has turned bad, wouldn't you want to know that immediately? I know they encourage you to get a weather radio, I own one, but what about the people that cannot afford one? What, do you just say "piss on them"?

I know that so many officials in TN have their heads in their @$$es and when the siren topic is brought up, they instantly make up a lousy excuse such as "they cost too much" or "their unreliable and a waste of tax dollars". See, that goes to show SO MUCH about how much your city/county gives a rats @$$ about their citizen's safety. If these people cared as much for their citizens as they SAY they do, don't you think they would be using OUR tax dollars on stuff like this and not for "that new rose garden beside the interstate"?

However there are some officials that support the idea, and I want to thank them right now. Good thinking

..and to those officials that don't give a rats @$$ about us, then you should be fired because you don't know what the he11 you're talking about.

Like as of now, it took two fatalities here in TN to make the state EMA pull their heads out of their butt and make sirens a requirement. Too bad we will all be issued those POS ATI sirens; those things are just cheap unreliable bullhorns. I even had a buddy from an EMA agree with me on that one! Get a real warning system, like a system of Sentrys, Whelens, ASC T-128/T-135's or 2001's. Then, the other thing, we won't have this all in until 2012. FOUR YEARS. Who else could lose their life within this time frame? They need to put that into perspective. Instead of using our tax money, I hope they know there is such thing called a GRANT.

Also, I'd like to state my opinion on reverse-911: it's useless. If you're outside, then what good is it going to do? Don't listen to those Code Red people; their just filling your head with crap that are lies.

Hopefully we won't all be screwed.

[Robert Gift]

... People here in TN (well, most of us) love the outdoors and we swim, golf, camp out, etc. If you're away from home and have no clue that the weather has turned bad, wouldn't you want to know that immediately? ...
... If you're outside, then what good is it going to do? ...

If you are outdoors, you are or should be aware of the weather.
The only time a siren is useful is if you are inside and not aware of the weather outside.

In bright clear skies I have entered a building and upon leaving when my work was completed was astonished to find threatening dark cloud cover.
That's Colorado.

I don't know why mechanical sirens must be so expensive.
Nothing more than a motor and rotor(s).

[Federal Signal fan]

Whelen Rules and All,
You bring and impressive debate. True, many forms of communication are here to replace sirens, but how's this:

Your outside at the park. You forgot your phone, but won't be out long. You don't have a computer for internet access. A weather radio, well, you don't commonly take that along to the park... The skies darken, but your not too scared. A tornado forms, while e-mails, alerts, and weather transmits are made, your still in the park enjoying the many things to do. The only way to warn those people in that situation is with a siren. When the siren blows, people know what to do... Or at least they should.

You see my point?

Yes, sirens are old technology.
No, they aren't useless because of new technology.

Like Whelen Rules stated, a combo system would be the best way to go. Sirens can be incorporated with almost every form of communication. Telephone, computer, phone, and etc.

So sirens stay, and the new technology should be incorporated with the sirens.

Joshua

[kswx29]

Everything can fail. If a text-messageing system were to fail, many people would not get the warning about a monster tornado headed for the town. With sirens, people would get the warning needed and lives would be saved! Better to be safe than sorry.