6 more sirens going up in Umatilla, Morrow counties

This story was published Wed, Jun 30, 1999

By Theresa Goffredo
Herald Oregon bureau

HERMISTON - Oregon Emergency Management officials announced Tuesday that Umatilla and Morrow County communities will get six more emergency sirens to alert residents in case of a lethal nerve agent leak at the Umatilla Chemical Depot.

The sirens are needed to cover areas recently populated by new arrivals to Eastern Oregon, said Tom Worden, public information officer for the state's emergency management program.

"Because the growth has been pretty significant around Hermiston and Irrigon, we've found some places the signal wasn't carrying far enough," Worden said. "So now our overall coverage will be improved."

Worden couldn't say Tuesday exactly where the new sirens would be placed. A weather tower also will be attached to one of the new sirens in Irrigon so emergency managers can better determine wind direction and speed, Worden said.

The six sirens, which include one portable siren, are being paid for by federal funds allocated through the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program. The cost is $210,000, including installation, Worden said.

The sirens are being manufactured and could be delivered as early as September, Worden added.

The CSEPP program was created by Congress to help prepare Eastern Oregon communities and others across the country near chemical weapon stockpiles in case of a lethal nerve agent accident. The chemical depot near Hermiston stores about 12 percent of the nation's chemical weapons.

The addition of six sirens brings the total number of emergency sirens in Umatilla and Morrow counties to 48. Currently, 63 emergency sirens are located in Umatilla and Morrow counties in Oregon and Benton County in Washington.

All 63 sirens were tested Tuesday for the first time from the new Emergency Operations Center in Umatilla County. For the most part, the test worked, except one of the 63 sirens didn't remain on for the full 60-second test, Worden said.

That siren, north of Hermiston near the Desert Lanes bowling alley, previously worked in silent tests. Worden added siren batteries can, over time, run down.

"That one is going to need a little tweaking," Worden said.

 

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