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Emergency management seeks next‑gen siren upgrades after some Marshfield sirens failed tests
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Summary
Deputy chief and emergency management staff reported that several neighborhood sirens did not sound during recent tests and proposed a next‑generation America Signal upgrade (radar/automatic triggering tied to the National Weather Service) with an estimated system cost of roughly $38,000 to replace radio modules and improve automated warning capability.
Deputy chief and emergency management staff told the commission they are proposing a phased upgrade to a next‑generation siren system (America Signal) that would include radar-based preemption tied to National Weather Service alerts and an integrated radio system to automate siren activation.
Staff said the full system (including radio integration and installation) is projected at roughly $38,000 for the initial upgrade work and would allow future siren replacements to be limited to the noise-maker head at lower per-unit costs. The deputy chief noted the new system would reduce the reliance on manual dispatch activation and would allow sirens to trigger automatically as severe weather approaches.
Recent test failures: staff reported that routine tests and a recent test sequence revealed some sirens did not sound. Investigation indicated a county radio upgrade or programming mismatch that prevented trip signals from reaching some towers. "We did three tests and none of it went off," staff recounted; technicians are working with the vendor to restore full communications and provide a timeline.
Why it matters: Commissioners expressed concern that existing dispatch/test systems run on an older Windows platform and that the manual activation process has caused delayed siren triggers in the past. Automatic radar-triggered activation would give residents earlier warning and reduce the risk of late alerts during fast-moving severe storms.
Next steps and timing: staff proposed upgrading existing sirens in a two-year rotation and said they would seek to replace and upgrade the full radio system to reduce manual operations; staff will follow up with vendor evaluations, timeline and cost details once the underlying communications issue is resolved.
No formal funding motion was taken at the meeting; commissioners discussed whether to table related budget items pending a vendor diagnosis of the radio/communications problem.
