Bucking The Trend, Louisville Clings to CD-era Sirens

[loukycheckinin]

Yo! It's Tyler from Louisville. I have been a member of this forum for at least 10 years but haven't had much time to post lately (adulting sucks), and I don't even know if anyone remembers me anymore! Anyway, I frequently read what's going on. Tonight I wanted to share this with you. There's lots of information below, so grab a beer (if of age, of course) and enjoy. You can click any picture for the full-sized version.

I've always respected my city, Louisville, for operating and maintaining their CD-era sirens long after most cities have replaced them. While not all Thunderbolts and 3T22s have escaped replacement, I would argue Louisville has the most legacy sirens operating in the country, save for Memphis (correct me if I am wrong!).

As of today, December 13th, 2021, we have:
-23 active Thunderbolts (22 1000Ts, 1 1000)
-17 active 3T22s
(Louisville Siren Map in my signature below)

But like I said, we have to understand sirens will be replaced...out with the old, in with the new...whatever. So I was deeply saddened when I was driving down Hubbard's Lane in June of this year and saw no Thunderbolt on top of the pole just north of the Waggener High School football field. But I had a hint of hope.

Because in late 2020, Louisville went on a mission to replace all the poles and/or wireless communications on their sirens- new or old. I personally saw crews working at roughly 3 sirens in November of 2020 and feared the worst, only to realize the siren wasn't what they were there for. And in early 2021, the 3T22 closest to my childhood home suddenly went missing from its pole. BUT, it wasn't that far away!


And sure enough, 2 weeks later, that 3T22 was back up on a brand new, and taller, pole with the aforementioned upgraded wireless communications.


Anyway. Back to June of this year. I'm driving down Hubbard's Lane and see that pole at Waggener without the 1000T on top. I couldn't stop to see what was going on because I was heading to meet friends for dinner, but let's be honest, the entire time I was there I just kept thinking about the fate of that siren. It's the lone east-end Thunderbolt in a sea of 2001s, so I have thought for years now that Waggener would be the next to be replaced.

Early the next Saturday, I head to Waggener to see what's up. Much to my delight, this is what I saw:












Take a closer look at that last picture. What do you see? I see a brand new pole along with preventative measures taken to ensure dirt doesn't get into the blower pipe. I was optimistic. I immediately thought about that 3T22 above that was taken down in Lyndon, and how it sat on the ground while the pole and communication system was replaced. And then it went back up.

Three days later came the first direct message from someone telling me Waggener's Thunderbolt had been replaced. Then another came. Then another. Then comments on my last Waggener High School Thunderbolt recording. Everyone is so used to legacy sirens coming down and never coming back up, and I don't fault them for that. But I responded to each message telling them "I almost guarantee Louisville will put it back up".

And yeah, I was correct, but I had no idea what was coming: a complete Thunderbolt refurb in 2021! Here is the Waggener Bolt as it stands today!












I'm thrilled to see my city is still clinging onto their Thunderbolts in 2021 and even putting time and effort into maintaining them. I understand the concerns around no battery backup, and I do not discount that. I'd argue most folks on this forum would gladly have a Thunderbolt stand in for a 2001 just for audio properties alone, so I like to think Louisville understands this...or maybe we are just broke and can't afford new sirens! Either way, I am happy.

The most recent CD-era siren replaced was the 3T22 on Bethany Ln. in early 2019. No removals since then, and while I will always know change is constant, it's a breath of fresh air to know they respect the sirens they have and they're willing to keep them online as long as possible.

Tomorrow is test day, and I am heading to Waggener.

All of you know my state is suffering major heartache right now while we try to rebuild places like Mayfield, Bowling Green, Dawson Springs and several towns in between. If you're the praying kind, please do so. If you're not, I'd ask you to keep my community in your thoughts. There are a lot of people grieving right now, and there is a lot of healing that needs to happen. I'm confident all of us- Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Tennessee and Kentucky can get through this and be stronger on the other side.

Thanks for reading my post, and I hope you all are doing well. It's time for another beer.

[nvanw27]

Welcome back to the board! Thanks for this write-up, it's terrific to see towns hanging on to their old systems. And thank you for putting a note in the bottom about the outbreak the other days ago.

[HudsonRiverSirens]

Glad cities are doing this. With cities such as Lansing, in the process of replacing their original system, and cities that already have such as Cincinnati, we are losing more and more of these systems. It's about time someone recognizes the value of these old gems.

[Model L]

always a good sight to see sirens restored and reinstalled. awesome!

[sirensandfirealarms]

man I was really worried when i heard about this one going down a couple months ago. but man was i surprised when a friend of mine went out there after it was refurbished. I go down there every couple of months to record a siren test.

[loukycheckinin]

Welcome back to the board! Thanks for this write-up, it's terrific to see towns hanging on to their old systems. And thank you for putting a note in the bottom about the outbreak the other days ago.

Thank you! I'll be better about being around here more vocally- I still record our tests every 2nd Tuesday of the month.

Glad cities are doing this. With cities such as Lansing, in the process of replacing their original system, and cities that already have such as Cincinatti, we are losing more and more of these systems. It's about time someone recognizes the value of these old gems.

I hope Louisville EMA does, and I think they do. Louisville obviously has never undergone a "replacement plan" like many other cities, and I like to think that is because they see how complicated and ineffective it is. ?

always a good sight to see sirens restored and reinstalled. awesome!

Heck yea- I will take it while I've got it!

man I was really worried when i heard about this one going down a couple months ago. but man was i surprised when a friend of mine went out there after it was refurbished. I go down there every couple of months to record a siren test.

Have you already recorded the Waggener bolt in its newest form?

[sirensandfirealarms]

Have you already recorded the Waggener bolt in its newest form?

No, i've only filmed the Thunderbolts at Wilder Elementary School, Olmsted Academy, and the low pitched one on Logan Street. I also recorded the 3T22 on Highview Fire Department Station 2 and i attempted to record the Modulator by the river, but Louisville cancelled that day due to thunderstorms in the area.

[loukycheckinin]

Have you already recorded the Waggener bolt in its newest form?

No, i've only filmed the Thunderbolts at Wilder Elementary School, Olmsted Academy, and the low pitched one on Logan Street. I also recorded the 3T22 on Highview Fire Department Station 2 and i attempted to record the Modulator by the river, but Louisville cancelled that day due to thunderstorms in the area.

Nice!!

The Wilder Bolt is my favorite in the system- I must have recorded that thing 15 times. I first fell in love with it when I was out in a tornado warning in 2011. You can hear that siren wind up in my video here. Such an incredible sound.

There's several recordings online of the "new" Olmsted Thunderbolt, but here is my recording of the original Thunderbolt.

Logan Street was replaced a few years ago, and I do not think the current bolt is the original. This is the original Thunderbolt. I have recorded the current one, but it is not online yet.

[championsiren]

I'm thrilled to see my city is still clinging onto their Thunderbolts in 2021 and even putting time and effort into maintaining them. I understand the concerns around no battery backup, and I do not discount that. I'd argue most folks on this forum would gladly have a Thunderbolt stand in for a 2001 just for audio properties alone, so I like to think Louisville understands this...or maybe we are just broke and can't afford new sirens! Either way, I am happy.

Nice to see members are coming back to the board!

The 2001 series is overall much better (when we're talking about effectiveness) than the thunderbolt. Just think about it. The 2001 series is louder than the thunderbolt and only has 2 moving parts... whereas the Thunderbolt is a bit quieter and has 3 moving parts. And as Luke Grauer said, if one part breaks the entire siren breaks.

Taking AUDIO into consideration, the 2001 sounds like a screaming child and the thunderbolt is just downright terrifying.

Just my 2 cents...

[Model L]

I'm thrilled to see my city is still clinging onto their Thunderbolts in 2021 and even putting time and effort into maintaining them. I understand the concerns around no battery backup, and I do not discount that. I'd argue most folks on this forum would gladly have a Thunderbolt stand in for a 2001 just for audio properties alone, so I like to think Louisville understands this...or maybe we are just broke and can't afford new sirens! Either way, I am happy.

Nice to see members are coming back to the board!

The 2001 series is overall much better (when we're talking about effectiveness) than the thunderbolt. Just think about it. The 2001 series is louder than the thunderbolt and only has 2 moving parts... whereas the Thunderbolt is a bit quieter and has 3 moving parts. And as Luke Grauer said, if one part breaks the entire siren breaks.

Taking AUDIO into consideration, the 2001 sounds like a screaming child and the thunderbolt is just downright terrifying.

Just my 2 cents...

well, if we want to get way into the technicalities, the 2001 has one motor driving a chopper, and another motor that drives a large spur gear through a gearbox that rotates the siren. power is supplied by several large deep cycle batteries that are charged off the power grid and provide enough power to sound the siren for I believe a max of 30 minutes (might be misremembering that). The thunderbolt on the other hand... has a motor driving a chopper, a motor powering a gear reduction drive through a belt (except for B series) that then rotates the siren, and it depends on a large roots blower that contains 2 rotating lobes, and their corresponding gears that is driven by several belts connected to a third motor to make any reasonable sound output. And of course, it requires live 3 phase grid power to sound at all, which could be provided by a generator (system 7000) but rarely is.

add to this the 2001 can be charged off of a solar panel, meaning grid power is not necessary at all, and you've got a recipe for a much more reliable siren.