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Board hears problems with siren testing, logging after new ICOM warning policy took effect
Summary
County emergency management says a new dispatch (ICOM) warning policy took effect May 23, but monthly siren tests and actual activations failed in several jurisdictions; EMA coordinator requested monthly log copies and clarified who may request siren activation.
Iroquois County emergency management officials reported continuing problems with the countywide siren network after ICOM adopted a new warning-systems policy that took effect May 23. EMA coordinator Mister Anderson said the newer policy should require sirens to sound automatically when the National Weather Service issues a tornado warning, but tests and activations have not worked reliably across jurisdictions.
Anderson told the board that during routine monthly testing only the city of Watsika’s sirens sounded; other county sirens did not. He said ICOM’s telecommunicators complete a monthly log that notes which sirens sounded and which did not. Anderson said he has now requested those logs be scanned and emailed to the EMA office monthly so he can follow up with village officials when tests fail. He emphasized that maintenance responsibility for individual-jurisdiction sirens rests with those jurisdictions, not the county.
Nut graf: The board discussed who may request siren activations under the new policy. Anderson said requests to activate sirens may come from designated public-safety officials (on-duty police, fire chiefs, the sheriff, county chairman or their designee and Illinois State Police), and he recommended removing a public phone line for unsolicited public requests to reduce false activations.
Among issues Anderson raised: during recent severe-weather events some jurisdictions were not notified in the first round of warnings and officials had to prompt ICOM to sound sirens; one monthly test produced onboard activation tones at dispatch that did not result in countywide siren activations. Anderson said ICOM acknowledged the problem and was investigating possible frequency or configuration issues. He asked the board to treat the ICOM policy as a living document and to allow minor changes as they identify operational problems.
Ending: Anderson said he will issue a countywide retest notice and publicize it on the EMA Facebook page once ICOM resolves the technical issue; he also said he will follow up with village officials when tests show failures so municipalities are aware and can arrange retesting or local repairs.
