Growl?

[AKSoapy29]

What is a ThunderBolt Growl test?

[Mantis]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... 4gF8#t=35s

Growl refers to any siren being shut on and then quickly off again before reaching peak frequency.

[Kiboe]

what he said ^

they do it because some areas don't like them being loud., such as gated communities and near retirement homes.

[BadgerSiren]

they do it because some areas don't like them being loud., such as gated communities and near retirement homes.

I haven't read that as a reason. I was under the impression that growl was used for testing purposes when a full alert/attack tone was undesirable, i.e. at night.

[AKSoapy29]

Then why do some sirens test growl, alert, and attack all at the same time?

[BadgerSiren]

Then why do some sirens test growl, alert, and attack all at the same time?

Choosing the signals to test is really a community/county preference. For instance, Madison, WI has never sounded their sirens in attack in the 22+ years I've lived here, at least not to my knowledge. They just do alert, the standard tone for tornado warnings. Whereas Milwaukee has done both on test days within the last decade. I think Cincinnati does all three?

[Oldiesmann]

Hamilton County does indeed do all three. They growl the sirens a minute or so before the actual test, then do three minutes of each cycle. I believe the growl is just to ensure each siren is responding. Clayton can explain it better.

[Rick K]

It's my understanding that a growl is to warn people nearby that, "HEY! I'm about to scream REALLY loud, so get the #$%@ outta here!" (something like that)

[AKSoapy29]

But sometimes the horn doesn't make it all the way around before the sound is to quite for us to hear.

[Rick K]

But sometimes the horn doesn't make it all the way around before the sound is to quite for us to hear.

Like I said, just enough for the people nearby...if you're near enough to sustain permanent hearing damage from a siren, you'll hear a growl even if the horn is pointing away from you.