Now we discover in the middle of severe weather that “Tornado Sirens” don’t correspond to just “Tornado Warnings, but the sirens are actually “Outdoor Warning Sirens” that are also activated for 70+ MPH winds. Neither of those two situations existed near Arlington Heights. NWS Tornado Warnings are activated when there has been a tornado observed by trained weather spotters on the ground, or when Doppler radar indicates rotation within a storm that could spawn a tornado at any time. That lack of verification from multiple sources had people confused. Friday, March 31, 2023, signaling a Tornado Warning notification for the area, according to people’s ‘old school’ common understanding of “Tornado Sirens.” However, there were no Tornado Warnings activated for Arlington Heights Friday from any other sources that provide weather alerts. Tornado sirens were activated in Arlington Heights five times between 7:56 p.m. Judging the incoming messages at CARDINAL NEWS, the police desk switchboard and the 9-1-1 center (NWCDS) likely received numerous calls from concerned citizens, and that likely interfered with normal public safety communications operations. People were also asking CARDINAL NEWS why there was a tornado siren activation when there is no Tornado Warning on any of the other common notifications. People that called or messaged CARDINAL NEWS, thought repeats were malfunctions, or ‘all clears’ followed by re-activations. It’s doubtful that many people knew about meaning of the repeat sirens every ten minutes for the duration of a weather warning. They get activated every 10 minutes for the duration of the weather warning.” Ferraro explained on Facebook Friday night, “there is no ‘all clear’ for the sirens. Some people were confused that the second siren activation was an ‘all clear’ but then when three additional siren activations occurred, that sort of tossed the ‘all clear’ assumption. When the sirens in Arlington Heights were activated five times, that really added to the confusion. Apparently, we’ll need clarification regarding how NWCDS manages these differences. While one community can have severe weather, another community might not have any severe weather at all. The NWCDS service area covers a number of communities that cover distances that can have significantly different severe weather conditions. Then there’s the possible issue that 70+ MPH wind alert was not even applicable for Arlington Heights, where the sirens were activated. Apparently, a lot of people didn’t get the memo that excessive thunderstorm winds also trigger an Outdoor Warning Siren activation. Our community leaders have failed to clearly define this change in the meaning of the Outdoor Warning Siren to their communities because the Outdoor Warning Sirens also refer to other weather hazards.Īccording to Northwest Central Dispatch System (NWCDS) Executive Director John Ferraro, posting on the official Facebook page for NWCDS, “Some people believe that the sirens only get activated for a tornado warning, however, they also get activated for reported winds of 70mph or higher.” The truth is probably more accurately described as “most people” believe that the sirens only get activated for a Tornado Warning. What we have often known as the Tornado Siren might not only refer to a Tornado Warning anymore. People were confused about what the Outdoor Warning Siren actually means. Alerts may be affecting people that aren’t actually in the severe weather area. There seems to be several issues that caused confusion. Cell phone alerts for a Severe Thunderstorm Warning were activated about 7:52 p.m., and the Tornado Sirens or Outdoor Warning Sirens in Arlington Heights were activated beginning about 7:56 p.m. Tornado Siren activation (now known as Outdoor Warning Siren Activation) caused considerable confusion Friday night, Mabecause there was no Tornado Warning activated by the National Weather Service for Arlington Heights when the sirens activated. but a small area for a Tornado Warning near Park Forest and Chicago Heights in south Cook County near the Illinois-Indiana state border. No Tornado Warning for Arlington Heights in NWS Chicago Map at 8:42 p.m.
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