Siren testing to keep the community safe

By Wendy McKillop

Beginning the first Tuesday in July and continuing every Tuesday evening at promptly 7:00 pm the Boulder Creek Fire Department will test the emergency siren.    

The siren has an important purpose, to alert residents of an impending emergency.  Once residents hear the siren they will know to seek out further information which can be obtained through various local websites, social media, or the radio station KBCZ.

It is important for residents to know that once the siren sounds, do not call 911 emergency unless you have a life threatening situation.  In the event of an actual emergency the 911 call centers are doing their job and extra calls from community members looking for information of the situation only hinders the process.

The ringing of the siren at 7:00 pm every Tuesday is a test of the system.  The mountain community of Boulder Creek once relied on this alert but the practice was done away with in the 1980s.  Since then the system has been tested on only four occasions throughout the year.  The most notable was the beginning of the Pancake Breakfast and Fourth of July Parade.  

Chief Mark Bingham, of the Boulder Creek Fire District, said in an interview with the Bulletin Friday Morning, “When you hear the siren and it is not Tuesday at 7:00 pm it is time to wake up and pay attention”.  

The siren can be heard from as far south as Brookdale and north beyond Teal.  Other districts have a similar siren and use it for similar reasons.  

This change came about through the suggestion of the county.  They state that having multiple ways to alert people is best practice.  There are other forms of communication to alert residents such as reverse 911. 

Chief Bingham said, “We know the system works.  During the CZU complex fire some people were hesitant to leave their properties after the evacuation order was sent out.  Once we sounded the alarm I saw 100 people leave.”  

The siren will grow in intensity as it is sounding in both decibels and pitch.  It will grow then decline.  

The important thing for residents to know is the siren will go off every Tuesday evening at 7:00 pm as a test.  Do not call 911 unless you have a personal emergency.  And if you hear the siren at other times then that, wake up and pay attention. Seek further information.