Crawford County EMA Says Sirens Are Ok After Confusion

ROBERTA, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Emergency alarm sirens in Crawford County are now working correctly after they went off accidentally a few weeks ago.

EMA Director Jake Watson and other officials scrambled to figure out why.

“The sirens activated because of a lighting strike that was in the area for the controller for the siren system,” Watson said.

Residents were on top of it. People in Crawford County immediately called Watson to say even though there was inclement weather; it didn’t look like a chance for a tornado.

The outdoor warning system was put into place after the devastation from a tornado that hit the area in 2007.

“The outdoor warning sirens are apart of a larger plan. They are just a small part of that plan, we recommend residents get their information from a variety of sources,” Watson said.

Watson says to check all of your sources. People living in the area can sign up for a Code Red Weather Alert System that goes to their phones.

After the severe tornadoes and storms in the middle of the country, residents like Linda Gurley say having the sirens in place and working makes a big difference.

“It makes you more aware that it can happen to you and I’m happy that we have a system here that will alert us in time,” Gurley said.

Watson says because of the sirens going off accidentally, they’ll be testing twice in June beginning on June 8, 2013.

He wants to make sure the system is working and hopes to get more sirens.