“Previously, our system was all or nothing: they either all went off, or they were all silent.”
Emergency Management Administrator Benjamin Rance says the new system uses “geofencing” to trigger sirens within one mile of a threat area as identified by the National Weather Service.
“We want to be as accurate as possible when we are looking at who we want to notify for severe weather events. We don't want alert fatigue. We don't want somebody to hear the sirens, four, five, six times in a row, when, really, they're not in the path of that weather, and then just say, it hasn't been anything, so I'm not going to react, right? When people hear the sirens, we want them to take action.”
The city operates 27 outdoor sirens which now feature back-up activations by Kent County, allowing the agencies to trigger each other's sirens if needed.
Rance emphasizes the sirens’ primary function.
“Back in the day, people used to call them tornado sirens, but really, they're all-purpose warning sirens right now. They're meant to alert people outside to something that could be potentially dangerous, and encourage them to go inside, seek more information.”
Testing of the new system will now occur year-round at noon on the first Friday of every month starting November 6th.
The City encourages everyone to sign up for Grand Rapids Emergency Alerts at: https://www.grandrapidsmi.gov/departments/emergency-management/register-for-grand-rapids-emergency-alerts/
For additional information about the City’s outdoor warning siren system, including how the system works, testing schedules, and frequently asked questions, visit the City’s Outdoor Warning Sirens webpage at: https://www.grandrapidsmi.gov/departments/emergency-management/outdoor-warning-sirens/.
For a weekly dose of news right to your inbox, sign up for the WGVU newsletter.
