On Wednesday, March 6, contractors with Little Rock’s Safetycom erected two new tornado sirens within the City of Mansfield.
Since coming back to the department as Chief, Michael Smith has made it a priority to acquire a more modern siren system. Over the course of the past 12-14 months, Smith has been able to make that happen.
The sirens, which are located at the public works building and off Slate Road near the high school, totaled $60,067.47. That included the two new Whalen Omni-Alert 1200 high powered sirens, solar panel charging and installation, and a FCC license to be able to set the sirens off remotely.
When the old siren at the public works building stopped functioning, the plans for a replacement became a priority. With over 5 decades in service, the old siren had served the city well. “We realized we also needed something near the high school, because when the siren would sound you couldn’t hear it out there. With all the housing and of course with the school, it was really needed.”
The new sirens include up to date and convenient safety features including remote access, higher decibels, multi-tone and voice message capability.
Currently, the system is operational manually. Smith noted that once the solar panels are installed, it will be fully functional, enabling remote / unwired deployment of the sirens.
Smith concluded that he would like to eventually see a third siren installed on the west side of the city.
