Were you suprised by the sounding of the county’s outdoor warning sirens yesterday given that no tornado was being forecast?

The Emergency Management division of the Sheriff’s Department has found itself explaining that a lot today. Here’s the explanation offered by Sgt. Bill Beth, KCSD public information officer.

Outdoor warning sirens are activated for three conditions : 1) A tornado has been sighted by trained spotter/law enforcement 2) The National Weather Service sees rotation and believes the formation of a tornado is highly possible and/or 3) Severe Thunderstorm Warning with Hurricane Force Winds (winds at or in excess of 74 mph).

Yesterday, we had a situation of Severe Thunderstorms with winds in excess of 74 mph. The sirens are re-activated if there is an extension of the warning.

The sirens are not only used for tornadoes. If anyone is thinking that the sirens should not have been used yesterday because there were no tornado warnings, they are not fully understanding the use of the sirens.