Outdoor Warning Sirens

 

 

 Many communities have installed outdoor warning siren systems to provide additional warnings of impending danger. As their name implies, these sirens are meant to be heard while outdoors.  This system is not designed or engineered to be heard inside every building in the coverage area.  If you are outside when the sirens sound seek shelter immediately and turn on a TV to a local channel, local radio, or a NOAA All Hazard Weather Radio to be informed of the emergency. DO NOT CALL 9-1-1 OR ANY OTHER EMERGENCY TELEPHONE NUMBER UNLESS YOU HAVE EMERGENCY INFORMATION TO REPORT (for example the sighting of a funnel cloud or other emergency).

During severe storm season you can be prepared for severe weather by simply listening to the forecast before you leave home. It is recommended that every home and business be equipped with a NOAA All Hazard Weather Radio, when they are not broadcasting watch and warning information, these valuable tools can provide you with detailed forecast information.  Detailed forecasts can also be found at The National Weather Service

 Goodhue County primarily uses the outdoor warning siren (steady tone) to warn the public of tornado warnings but they may use it to warn of other disasters.  When the siren sounds it is very important that you seek shelter and turn on a TV or radio to be informed of the hazard and what steps to take to protect yourself and you family.

 NOAA All Hazard Weather Radios 

NOAA All Hazards Weather Radio (NWR) is a nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information direct from a nearby National Weather Service (NWS) office. NWR broadcasts warnings, watches, forecasts and current weather conditions 24 hours a day. Known as the "Voice of the National Weather Service", NWR is provided as a public service by the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

 All Hazards weather radios equipped with a special alarm tone feature will sound an alert and give you immediate information about a life threatening situation. During an emergency, NWS personnel will interrupt routine weather programming and send out the special tone that activates weather radios in the listening area. To purchase a NOAA Weather Radio, check with your local electronics shop or check out our NWR manufacturer listing.

With the implementation of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME), it is now possible to program certain weather radios to sound an alert for only the counties desired in a specific NWR's broadcast area. The owner of a NWR with SAME technology would program the desired county or counties into the radio. It will then alert the user only to weather emergencies for the specific area(s) programmed. Older (non-SAME) NWR receivers without SAME capability would alert for emergencies anywhere within the coverage area of the NWR transmitter, even though the emergency could be well away from the listener. The SAME technology can eliminate this appearance of over warning. You can find out more information about Same Technology or EAS Broadcasts from the National Weather Service. When the NWS broadcasts an urgent audio message, a digital SAME burst of information is also broadcast. This SAME code contains information on the type of message, county(s) affected, and expiration time of the message (the SAME code broadcast can be heard as three brief bursts of static). An appropriately programmed NWR with SAME technology will then turn on upon receiving the information burst.

 NOAA All Hazards Weather Radio is not just for emergencies. It is a round-the-clock source of weather reports and information to help you prepare for the day ahead. Each NWS office tailors its broadcast to suit local needs. Routine programming is repeated every few minutes and consists of the local and regional forecast as well as the latest regional weather conditions. Additional information including river stages and climatic information is also provided. 

Tone alerts by the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in

Chanhassen, Minnesota

 

* = Later Midland WR-100 models do not audibly alert for this test

The hearing and visually impaired can receive watches and warnings by connecting the weather radio to other kinds of attention-getting devices like strobe lights, pagers, bed shakers, personnel computers and text printers.          

If you would like help programming your NOAA All Hazard Weather Radio please contact the PIIC Emergency Coordinator at 385-4178.