Well, I tried. Looks like the legislation I pushed last year for warning siren consistency in usage isn't going to get another go this year. Too many County Judge Executives are ignoring the need for it. They are saying "one-call systems are the future" and "we don't like sirens".
Well, that's all great and everything...IF every citizen carries a smartphone in their pocket 24/7 AND IF they are registered on the one-call list. But you're going to have farmers, hunters, fishers, construction workers, people at sporting events, people at pools, etc. etc. etc. that are NOT going to be connected to one-call systems while they're outside doing what they do and when a tornado pops over the hill they're in a mess because these folks didn't understand the need for audible outdoor warning systems and wouldn't take the word of someone who does to protect their citizens.
The outdoor warning sirens were never intended to reach people who are indoors. And even in today's society there are countless reasons why people spend time outdoors and not every person is connected to a wireless network constantly. The audible warning from sirens is still just as relevant today as it was in the post WWII era. But since the technology is there to rely on smartphones and fancy dialing systems, these Judges and EM Directors are being led astray and they are going to decrease the safety of their citizens by abandoning a tried and true warning system in coming years.
OK, rant is over now. I hope you all stay safe. Severe weather season will be upon us before you know it. Let's pray that Kentucky doesn't find itself in a large tornado outbreak this season.
-Shawn
I could not agree more about this. I live in West Liberty, very close to town, and I was on my front porch with a camera when the big tornado was rolling in. All the while, I kept thinking we were probably OK because I hadn't heard the siren go off. We ended up taking cover just seconds before it came over the hill.
ReplyDeleteIn interviews with FEMA afterwards, they asked if we had heard the siren. I indicated that no, we had not. They said that nobody they had interviewed in town had heard the siren, which in fact had not gone off at all. Turns out, it has been out of operation for several years now. The interviewer indicated that the county receives money to keep their sirens operational, and that if something like this were to happen again, and they come back and find that there was no siren warning again, there could be trouble.
I now wonder about that, seeing as how there does not appear to be any legislation saying the county has to have a siren. I brought it up with some local officials, and they gave me the same answer you are sharing here...sign up for the call system. I agree that it is nice for warnings at night, but I don't always have my phone with me, and my wife does not use a cell phone at all, so if she is outside when a warning comes, she will not know the first thing about it.
I support your efforts on this. It is just sad that nobody sees the danger of not having operational sirens.
Your rant is very understandable, and yes you are correct about the "good ole boy" syndrome that affects most rural counties across the state. It’s a shame that in today’s world $$$ means more than safety and people’s lives. But that is the sad, horrible truth.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your blog. Visit if often. :)