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When extreme weather approaches, Damon, I think we're getting *** tornado right now. Minutes can save lives. If you hear this noise, that's your signal to seek shelter. Outdoor warning sirens are just one of many ways to alert you to safety, but how do they work? And are they still the best way to stay alert? Even the pigeons take part as New York holds its biggest civil defense drill. Outdoor warning sirens alert people to seek shelter when something life threatening is happening. And once they're safely indoors, they should get more information. Outdoor sirens were initially installed during the Cold War to warn of *** nuclear attack or an air raid. Then in 1970, they started using the sirens to warn of tornadoes. While many may think the National Weather Service is behind the warning system, local city or county officials like police, fire department, or emergency management personnel ultimately make the final decision. 3214. The NWS issues severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings and then passes this information to local officials who decide whether to sound the alarm. This is why sometimes the outdoor sirens turn on, but there's no official tornado warning. There's actually no national protocol on when to use outdoor sirens. Each city or county makes its own guidelines on when to activate the sirens. Check with your local government on their specific guidelines and when you should expect to hear them being tested. Generally, the sirens are turned on when life threatening weather approaches. This can include tornadoes, large hail, and severe thunderstorms with winds of 70 MPH or more. People should not solely rely on outdoor sirens, according to Vivek Mahale. The lead meteorologist at the NWS in Norman, Oklahoma. Outdoor sirens are for people who are outdoors. They're not intended to be heard inside your house or in your vehicle or business, and they're not designed to wake you up. So are outdoor sirens outdated technology? Rick Smith, Norman's NWS coordination meteorologist, says they're still useful. I don't think we should just get rid of them. I'm not saying cut them all down and just eliminate them. They do have *** role and their role is to alert people who are outside, not otherwise paying attention to the weather to go see what's going on. The sirens come in handy in places where cell phone service may not be great, like on hiking trails, golf courses, and major outdoor events like music festivals or the Kentucky Derby. In March 2024, officials in Louisville, Kentucky debuted *** new portable warning device called the Rapid Deployable siren. It can issue weather warnings, evacuation orders, or other emergency alerts. When you pack 800,000 people right along the river, you got *** lot of things going on at once. We want to make sure that with that amount of people. In such *** concentrated area that in *** worst case scenario or *** weather emergency we're able to notify everyone as sirens age, maintaining them can be costly. Installing just one can cost between $30,000 to $50,000. Nowadays newer sirens have sensors that automatically report the status of each siren. This reduces the labor needed to maintain them. It was *** huge lift to get enough people out there all the time to monitor those sirens. Now it's just *** matter of somebody monitoring the screen. The number one instruction is to make sure you have multiple. Ways of staying alert you can use *** weather radio turn on weather notifications on your phone, download your local TV station's news app and turn on notifications. If you live in an area prone to tornadoes, you might even consider using do not disturb sparingly overnight, especially during tornado season.