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Michael D. Pitman reports about Butler County, Ohio, politics, county government, countywide issues and Butler County people just like you for Cox Ohio Publishing (including the Hamilton JournalNews, Middletown Journal and several weekly papers in Butler County). He wants your suggestions and questions for more news stories. Leave a comment for him here or e-mail Michael at Home > Blogs > Butler County News and Issues > Archives > 2011 > March > 21
Monday, March 21, 2011
Should all communities adopt countywide siren policy?
This week is also Spring Severe Weather Awareness Week in Ohio.
Since 1978, the Ohio Committee for Severe Weather Awareness has been educating Ohioans about the dangers associated with severe weather hazards, the most common types of affecting Ohio include floods, tornadoes and severe winter storms.
The awareness week, designated the week of March 20 by Gov. John Kasich, raises the awareness of severe weather in hopes to reduce its impact, according to a letter from committee chair Mark Taylor.
“Ohio tornado activity varies each year, averaging about 16 tornadoes annually. Thirty-nine tornadoes were reported in Ohio in 2010,” Taylor wrote.
Butler County EMA Director Jeff Galloway has been making the rounds since October to various communities making a pitch for the countywide tornado siren policy. Most have agreed, some have not. He has three more councils to address, not including the Fairfield Twp. Board of Trustees Tuesday night.
The policy would activate the sirens in all communities (or at least all where the policy is adopted) if a tornado is spotted, as well as a funnel cloud.
If the policy would have been in effect, the sirens would have sounded four times. There were six funnel clouds spotted within the county — four on June 14, one on June 21 and one on Aug. 15. The fourth time would have been on Oct. 26 when a tornado touched down in southeastern Indiana near Butler County.
What are your thoughts? Should all communities where the 89 severe weather sirens are located adopt the countywide policy, or is sounding the sirens four times a month (at least for 2010) too many times?
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