What’s the deal with outdoor warning sirens?

Brenda Tomlinson

Emergency Management Director

Wabasha County

Outdoor warning sirens are pretty common in Minnesota, but what do the different sounds mean and why do they sound at different times?

Many, but not all, communities have the siren sound at noon. Some also sound it at 6 pm. It’s just one single cycle of the siren. There are some towns that use it to announce when there is a fire in their community. That sound is the slow high/low sound and it will go on for a while.

We also have a siren near the Lake Zumbro/Rochester Public Utilities Dam that will sound if there is an issue with the dam and we need residents downstream of the dam to evacuate. That sound would be a fast high/low sound and it would continue for a long time.

On the first Wednesday of every month at 1 p.m., the outdoor warning siren sounds a long, steady wail for 3 minutes. This is known as the Civil Defense Siren Test.

Occasionally, you might hear a short whir of the outdoor warning sirens. This is called a Growl Test. It’s just a quick test to be sure the sirens are working. Each siren sends a report back to the County Sheriff’s Dispatch Center to let them know whether or not the siren is working.

Lastly, the actual reason Wabasha County has outdoor warning sirens is to alert people who are outside when a tornado either has been spotted by a trained weather spotter or when conditions are right for a tornado to develop. This sound is the long, steady wail of the siren. The head of most sirens slowly spin so it may vaguely sound like a high/low siren sound. It will continue to sound until the threat is over, meaning the tornado has dissipated, or weather conditions have changed for the better.

Since the sirens are outdoor warning sirens, you should always have another way to hear what the weather is doing when you are inside. We recommend purchasing a NOAA Weather Radio or downloading a weather app to keep well informed of the weather in your immediate area.

Local television and radio stations will also have up to the date information. Wabasha County also has CodeRED Weather Warning which sends a text, an email, and/or calls your cell or landline telephone when there has been a severe thunderstorm or tornado warning within the county.

You’ll need to sign up for this free service by texting WabashaCoAlert to 24639 or going to the county website www.co.wabasha.mn.us/community/publicsafety and clicking on Emergency Management then CodeRED.

If you have questions, feel free to call me at Wabasha County Emergency Management at 651-565-3069.