Sallisaw seeks storm siren solution
Tornadoes and severe storms usually barrel through Sallisaw from the west — generally a southwest-to-northeast trek for tornadoes, and for storms, often depending on the season, from the northwest, southwest or due west. And if you live on Sallisaw’s westside, you may not have known that your chances of being warned of approaching storms and twisters are widely problematical.
Of the city’s three storm sirens, the one located in the 600 block of South Kerr Boulevard which is supposed to aler...
Tornadoes and severe storms usually barrel through Sallisaw from the west — generally a southwest-to-northeast trek for tornadoes, and for storms, often depending on the season, from the northwest, southwest or due west. And if you live on Sallisaw’s westside, you may not have known that your chances of being warned of approaching storms and twisters are widely problematical.
Of the city’s three storm sirens, the one located in the 600 block of South Kerr Boulevard which is supposed to alert those living and working in the vulnerable west-southwest region “works intermittently and needs to be replaced,” City Manager Keith Skelton alerted Sallisaw City Commissioners prior to their monthly meeting Monday evening.
In addition, a storm siren located on the city’s south side near the SLPT Global Pump Group in the industrial park, is in no better shape, George Bormann told the city commissioners.
Skelton and Bormann agree that the west side of town has inadequate emergency warning coverage, so the city plans to purchase two replacement sirens to provide citizens with advanced warning of severe weather and tornadoes. A public hearing was conducted during Monday’s meeting to allow citizen comment regarding the city’s intent to file an application for financial assistance with the USDA Rural Housing Services to purchase new sirens.
The current westside siren — which is positioned to warn those in the area from the airport on the south to beyond the high school on the west to Devron Street on the north and to Sallisaw City Park on the east — is supposed to cover a circular area 2.5 miles in diameter, and intersects similar areas on the east and north sides of the city. According to a map detailing the siren coverage areas, the siren in the industrial park currently does not provide an alert for the south side.
If the city’s application is approved, the USDA will provide funding for 55% or up to $50,000 of the project costs, which in Sallisaw’s application is the turnkey installation of two storm sirens, estimated to cost $65,900. If approved for funding, the USDA would cover $36,200 of the cost, with the city match being $29,700.
The cost is based on a bid from Storm Sirens Inc. of Norman, which recommends omni-directional sirens, which include backup batteries in the event of a power outage, as well as the installation of a 45-foot-tall wooden utility pole on which to mount the siren.
