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Belvedere–Tiburon board hears plan to upgrade peninsula sirens, urges Alert Marin sign‑ups
Summary
Officials said they will retrofit the peninsula’s siren network to integrate with county alerting and expect parts and work to take about 4–6 weeks. Speakers reiterated home‑hardening, chipper programs and mailers from the fire district to boost preparedness.
Council members and emergency staff told the Belvedere Tiburon Joint Disaster Advisory Council on Jan. 28 that the peninsula’s outdoor siren system will be upgraded to integrate with county alerting infrastructure and to permit local activation when needed.
Rich (staff member) said the town has a vendor estimate and expects to begin work once parts arrive. “I think we're looking at literally 4 to 6 weeks,” he said.
The upgrade is intended to restore reliable local activation and to mirror the county’s newer system so officials can choose which sirens to sound and what pre‑recorded messages to send. Officials emphasized that sirens are meant to supplement — not replace — Alert Marin and wireless alerts, because many residents now rely primarily on mobile devices.
Emergency staff and speakers also reviewed other preparedness measures used on the peninsula: - Water system improvements: speakers noted long‑running investments by Marin Municipal Water District, replacement of wooden tanks with stainless steel, new mains, additional hydrants and twice‑annual hydrant maintenance. - Vegetation mitigation and chippers: officials said peninsula chipper days and vegetation removal programs have removed significant amounts of dead fuel; outreach continues with county open‑space partners. - Public mailers and home assessments: Southern Wind Fire District said residents in district areas will receive a mailer with mitigation reminders and information on free one‑hour home assessments.
Leah Curtis, education coordinator for Southern Wind Fire District, said the district is offering free, in‑person home assessments: “It’s an hour assessment, 1 on 1 with 1 of our inspectors.”
Officials also said an evacuation and temporary refuge planning conversation is ongoing with police and fire chiefs; incident commanders would identify which temporary refuge area (for example Shoreline Park or Paradise Park) to use in a specific event.
The council asked for the upgraded siren system to be coordinated with neighboring Southern Marin sirens and Richardson Bay Sanitary District locations. Staff said some siren types (for example LRAD units) are better suited to certain topographies and that re‑deploying units to cover exposed areas was part of the plan.
Town and county staff also noted other operational work in progress, including vendor changes to the county alerting vendor for faster delivery during mass notifications, improved localized maps for inundation zones, and continuing public education on go‑bags and defensible space.
