More information will be forthcoming in the future but it looks like the City of Marion will be able to afford battery operated tornado warning sirens.

City administrator David Mayfield reported Monday that five sirens could serve the entire city at a cost of nearly $60,000.

The concern was addressed a few weeks ago after a high wind from a thunderstorm downed electrical poles southwest of Marion, which caused an electrical outage in the city. Conditions were favorable for a tornado but the sirens could not be used without electricity. Local police officers and volunteer firefighters took to the streets with public address systems, advising residents to take shelter.

The council asked city officials to check costs of sirens that will operate without electricity.

Mayfield said electric sirens with a battery backup were an additional $9,000 each. However, he was quick to note this bid was from only one vendor and he wanted to check with other vendors for quality products at a lower price.

The battery-operated sirens could operate for 15 minutes. Typically, sirens are initially sounded for three-minute and one-minute intervals.

With two or three sirens strategically located throughout the city, all residents should be able to hear the warnings. The new sirens cover nearly a mile radius.

An electric siren near the city building already has been hooked up to the city’s generator at the city building, Mayfield said.

He said the city had funds available to purchase two sirens at this time and he could come up with funds to purchase a third.

The sirens would be radio-controlled with the purchase of two hand-held radios at approximately $600 per radio.

More information will be provided at a future meeting.