Marion sirens trigger automatically
Staff writer
Marion residents who wondered why outdoor warning sirens sounded repeatedly Monday night despite the absence of a tornado warning can look at an automated warning system tied directly to National Weather Service alerts.
The city’s siren system activated automatically after the weather service issued a destructive severe thunderstorm warning for the area, city administrator Brian Wells said.
“The system set it off because the Weather Service issued a warning for our area,” Wells said.
The warning cited the possibility of 100-mph wind gusts and instructed residents to seek shelter and treat the storm as they would a tornado.
According to Wells, the weather service later extended or modified the warning several times, resulting in multiple siren activations throughout the evening.
Some residents questioned the repeated activations because no tornado warning was issued.
The city’s current system differs from older warning system that relied on manual activation, Wells said.
The upgraded system was installed last year and automatically responds. Marion works with OmniWarn Public Safety, which provides the warning-system software and equipment manufactured by Federal Signal.
The system is designed to activate during the highest level of severe thunderstorm warnings as well as tornado warnings.
According to Wells, Marion’s sirens may be activated for tornado warnings or severe thunderstorm warnings involving winds exceeding 75 mph, baseball-sized hail, or excessive cloud-to-ground lightning.
The city also can activate the sirens manually.
Wells, police chief Aaron Slater, and his assistant police chief all have authority to activate the system locally.
City officials had been monitoring conditions Monday night and were prepared to activate the sirens if necessary.
“We were ready to do that if we needed to,” Wells said.
However, Wells said no local activation was required because the National Weather Service warning automatically triggered the system before city officials took action.
OmniWarn representatives reviewed the system’s performance after the storm and reported that the equipment functioned as designed, Wells said.
Marion lost power for about three minutes during the storm.