Madison County & Redstone Arsenal, AL Siren History

[freebrickproductions]

We should also have a Thunderbeam at Davis Hills School. The one at Fire Station 14 was replaced by a 2001 several years ago. The Thunderbeams have a problem with seizing up and we can't get parts or they are too costly to fix. They are replaced when they totally fail. I had to haul the last one to fail (Meadowbrook) off to the metal scrap dumpster. They are heavy!

Enjoying the pictures! Good job!

Yea, that one was mentioned in the original post. I made a post last summer that had pictures of it in there, and I didn't feel like re-posting them.

[freebrickproductions]

Found this old picture taken in Madison, AL on Facebook today. I'm not sure when it was taken right now though, or even what siren is in it, but I think it was a Federal or Darley of some kind:


This building is now the Main Street Café and it was the city hall with a VFD and Police Department before. I think this is where the Model 2 was before 1994.

EDIT: The picture was apparently taken in 1969.

[alineber]

I just found a News Real video on youtube showing an Altec Giant Voice Warning System from 1965 in Dade County Florida. This shows the Original Multi-Cell Horns that Huntsville and Redstone Arsenal had (1966). Some of these Multi-Cell Horns were replaced with Square looking Horns, over time at Redstone Arsenal. I'm not sure why Redstone replaced their Original Multi-Cells with the Square ones (Replaced in the late 1980's). This system met its demise, because it was costly to maintain. Back in the 50's & 60's, lots of money was given from the Federal Government to buy and maintain outdoor warning systems. In the mid to late 70's, the Federal Government started cutting back on the money and cities across the US had to pick up the cost. This is why many large cities, like Los Angles, disconnected their warning sirens in the 80's and now they are rusting away on metal poles.

ATTENTION: This video will show a small clip of the Multi-Cell Horn on top of a tower building with voice communication only. It does not have the audio of the warning tones.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwYmouFZpuM

Enjoy this piece of electronic outdoor warning history.

[emofficer]

This is how we activated the sirens from the 1960s until the 1990s. The last siren was taken off this type activation in 2001:


It was a Motorola Quik Call 1 encoder (the same tones you heard in the TV show Emergency!

[emofficer]

This is my own small contribution to Madison County siren history. I made the recommendation to go to continuous 360 degree warning sirens vs. rotating ones. The first 5 have been installed and are among the new sirens on the new activation system currently being installed.
Here is a video of a manual test of one of those sirens: Sentry 20V2T:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC5VSqSX1po

[freebrickproductions]

This is how we activated the sirens from the 1960s until the 1990s. The last siren was taken off this type activation in 2001:


It was a Motorola Quik Call 1 encoder (the same tones you heard in the TV show Emergency!

I have to wonder which siren it was, though I willing to bet that it was either the Model 2 in Triana.

[emofficer]

I have to wonder which siren it was, though I willing to bet that it was either the Model 2 in Triana.

Our last list of the tone activated sirens was in 1999:


MC-2
MAYSVILLE CENTRAL VFD
3179 MAYSVILLE RD., MAYSVILLE

MC-4
MOORE’S MILL VFD
177 PLAZA DR., MOORE’S MILL (A new station has been built since on Moores Mill Rd.)

OXR-1
OWENS CROSS ROADS TOWN HALL
2965 OLD HWY 431, OWENS CROSS ROADS

MC-6
TONEY VFD
5678 OLD RAILROAD BED RD., TONEY

T-1
TRIANA TOWN HALL
640 6TH STREET, TRIANA



INDIVIDUAL ACTIVATION (STEADY TONE)

Utilize the codes shown above to activate the appropriate siren. Enter the first two code letters on the top row of push-button switches and the second two code letters on the bottom row of push-button switches. Press the CODE START switch to activate the siren. The meter will activate twice indicating proper transmission of the tone signal.

ALL CALL ACTIVATION (STEADY TONE ALERT)

Press code letters ___ on the BOTTOM ROW of push button switches. Press GROUP TEST and HOLD FOR 10 SECONDS. Meter will activate indicating proper transmission of the tone signal. REPEAT all call activation sequence one time. If this procedure does not work try individually activating each siren.

Malfunctions or improper indications must be immediately reported to one of the following:

_________

[emofficer]

New system map out today: http://www.madisoncountyema.com/Sirens2015.pdf

More photos of the system

Old EOC 1965 - 2002 (Quik Call siren activation was in the room straight ahead through the open door barely visible beyond the big white crt monitor sitting on a cart in the middle of the room):


Alabama A&M:



New Sentry 20V2T at Goldsmith Schiffman Elementary:





Siren controls damaged during the April 27, 2011 tornadoes:

[r4tbolts]

When did quick call come about ? Looks pretty cutting edge at the time. In my neck of the woods we were still using the landline loop dialer till the early 80's. Nice pics.

[Stormsetter4]

Is the siren at Alabama A&M a 2T or a normal single tone model 2?