The Importance of High Power Audio for Severe Weather Alerting
Kara Stamets, Content Marketing Specialist, Alertus Technologies
We are reaching the midpoint of hurricane season on the East Coast (August-October), and California is in the midst of wildfire season (July-October). Many regions have already experienced flash floods this year – from California’s Tropical Storm Hilary to fierce Storm Daniel in the Mediterranean, which led to catastrophic flooding in Libya.
Strong winds from Hurricane Dora contributed to a devastating wildfire in Maui, and Florida’s Big Bend region was hit by category 3 Hurricane Idalia, resulting in significant flooding and damage. With major weather events increasing in frequency and intensity, communities must consider incorporating effective outdoor warning systems as part of their mass notification approach in order to mitigate harm.
Alertus High Power Speaker Array (HPSA)
Including outdoor high-power audio as a key component of your severe weather alerting plan is critical to safety in your community. Outdoor warning speakers, such as Alertus’ High Power Speaker Arrays, provide long-range, attention-grabbing, clear voice messaging to alert widespread communities of impending weather emergencies, such as intense thunderstorms, tsunamis, tornados, hurricanes, or wildfires.
Outdoor Warning Tips:
Sirens should be sounded when a life-threatening event occurs.
Sirens are typically used to communicate that individuals should seek shelter or shelter-in-place but also can be used to deliver evacuation orders.
Outdoor sirens are not intended for alerting people indoors.
Sirens complement other critical alerting channels, including Wireless Emergency Alerts, NOAA Weather Radio, and local TV and radio station notifications.
Sirens should be tested monthly, according to local policies, and doing so familiarizes your community with the sound of the siren.
Sirens should be activated by city or county officials, emergency management personnel, or police/fire departments.
Guidelines for activating sirens vary by jurisdiction, so check with your local community emergency management system on use cases.
Damage from severe weather is not always preventable, but communities can mitigate harm by preparing in advance with a unified warning system. California officials avoided any loss of life during Tropical Storm Hilary in part due to consistent emergency messaging issued beforehand.
As extreme weather continues to pose a threat to vulnerable regions across the world, local officials should evaluate the effectiveness of their current severe weather plan as a preventative measure. Determining if there are any gaps in notification coverage and considering integrating outdoor notification into your system will ensure that your community can get out of harm's way faster. Contact us to learn more about Alertus’ outdoor emergency notification solutions.