Thought I might partake in this one:
Vigo County, IN
Vigo County, IN has employed forty-two Whelen Vortexes, nine Whelen WPS-2902's, four Whelen WPS-2903's, and six Whelen WPS-2904's (for a total of sixty-one sirens). The omnidirectional Whelens are located in parks, universities, and other areas of high outdoor pedestrian traffic throughout the county. That way, vocal instruction can be transmitted in localized areas where it is most important. The Vortexes are placed in areas where voice coverage is not needed, as well as around the county, in smaller towns, and to fill in coverage gaps. The reason for no county wide voice notification is that often times voice coming through on multiple sirens form multiple distances and/or angles will become garbled and unintelligible. The Vortexes are able to provide a harsh enough tone that should send a clear message without needing a vocal warning.
Siren protocol is as follows:
Testing: First Friday of each month at noon in three minutes of alert.
Tornado Warning: Three minutes of wail.
General emergency: Hi-lo
The voice-capable Whelens use their corresponding pre-recorded voice messages before each test, and live PA is used as needed.
Christian Bricking, living in the Cincinnati Metropolitan Area.
Owner of a WPS-2804, Model L, and B9.
Certified Skywarn spotter since April 5, 2016.
