More On Sunday’s Sirens

Update from Chief Knitter: I am happy to report that WE Energies replaced one of the transformers feeding power to the siren and American Signal then reset an internal switch on the siren and it is now OPERATIONAL.  Electronic polling (sending a signal to it remotely) and actual “growl” testing (making it spin and sound momentarily) were both successful. Both agencies believe the transformer may have been hit by lightning that caused both the transformer and the internal switch on the siren to fail.

 Following up on Sunday’s storms, here is some more information on the tornado sirens in town …

South Milwaukee has two tornado siren locations: near the former middle school near Memorial Drive and at the South Milwaukee Fire Department. The siren at the fire department did not sound during Sunday’s storm.

Why? According to South Milwaukee Fire Chief Joe Knitter …

The problem with the siren has been identified to be inadequate power coming from the WE Energies transformer that supplies the required voltage to the siren.  Apparently, the field technician identified an issue with one phase of the three-phase power that comes into the siren.  When I heard the description of the problem, I recalled that we had a similar issue earlier this year.  A search of the repair records by American Signal showed that we did have a similar issue back in May of this year and WE Energies had to come out to fix it.  WE Energies has been notified by Milw. County Emergency Management.

Previously, Chief Knitter had sent me this update.

Milwaukee County Emergency Management is responsible for the operation of the forty-eight outdoor warning sirens located throughout Milwaukee County. These sirens are electronically tested daily at approximately 2 AM to determine their serviceability. In addition, an audible test of the sirens is done on the second Wednesday of each month, weather permitting. The results of these tests are reviewed and forwarded on to the contracted servicing agency to affect any repairs that may be necessary. Records indicate that the involved siren had no issues during the testing cycles. …

We have a very proactive emergency management system in our community. The City identified a problem with one of the sirens very shortly after the warning was issued and made the requisite phone calls to Milwaukee County Emergency Management to attempt to troubleshoot the problem. Jackie Ove, our Public Health Administrator and Emergency Management Director and myself, as Deputy Director of Emergency management, were in contact from the onset of the storm until the warnings had expired and the system had moved on.

Chief Knitter also has some good suggestions on staying informed during severe storms.

The Outdoor Warning Siren System is designed to be heard OUTSIDE only.  It is not intended to be heard inside the confines of a building and should not be relied upon as the only alerting “system” for the public.

The absolute best weather alerting system available is a NOAA Weather Radio. These radios broadcast continuous weather information, including warnings, watches, forecasts and other hazard information, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, directly from the nearest National Weather Service office. In addition, radios are available that are powered by batteries, thus providing reliable advanced warning, even in the event of a power outage. The next best source of information is our 24/7/365 news media.  All of our local news and radio stations do an excellent job of informing the public, especially considering they are able to broadcast live radar and provide up-to-the minute updates.