Even the best laid plans of mice and men sometimes go awry...
A test of the county's 11 severe weather warning sirens didn't quite go as planned today, while the City of Marion's alarm sounded off as expected, albeit a little longer than the minute most people in the downtown area expected.
Judge-Executive Perry Newcom said a glitch in the county's warning system prevented all of the strategically-placed alarms from sounding during their first planned test today, which was scheduled for noon. He said four of the alarms have also gone off at sporadic times prior to the intended test. The sirens are now shut down until the company that installed them has a chance to troubleshoot the technical problems, likely next week.
Meantime, the city's alarm, operated independently of the county's system and based at the new fire station, effectively filled downtown with the sound of the alert. Both the city and county's sirens were intended to be tested simultaneously.
