KOKOMO — Millions of dollars in upgrades have been made to tornado warning siren networks in many Indiana counties, while others still have little or no such systems.
Downtown Kokomo was silent as sirens blared in other cities around Indiana during a statewide test on Wednesday.
The test found few problems in Marion County, where a $4.8 million system overhaul that became fully operational this year increased the number of sirens around Indiana from 139 to 168. Officials reported problems with three sirens Wednesday.
"We're doing pretty well, much better than the majority of the state because we are so densely populated," Marion County Emergency Management coordinator Debbi Fletcher said. "We want to make sure we can notify people."
Such elaborate networks are far from universal around the state. Shelby County has nine sirens to cover its 413 square miles. Brown County doesn't have any warning sirens as officials there say its sparse population and hilly terrain are not conducive to such a system.
Cost is a major impediment to better warning systems.
Howard County Emergency Management Director Larry Smith told WTHR-TV of Indianapolis it would cost nearly $500,000 to buy enough sirens to cover the Kokomo area, which has been hit hard by the recession and has an unemployment rate topping 13 percent.
"We're just trying to survive," Smith said.
Some smaller communities have upgraded their warning systems. The 700-person town of Monrovia, southeast of Indianapolis, has three new sirens being installed by early April after it set aside $65,000 for the purchase.
"We didn't have any and we feel we're in the area some call tornado alley. That's why we think it's very important we do this for our citizens," Monrovia Town Council President Bob Marley said. "We're excited about them and this time of year, everyone starts thinking about storms."
Wednesday's test also helped officials identify problems in some counties.
Two of Monroe County's roughly 25 sirens didn't work properly, including one at the Ransburg Boy Scout Reservation near Bloomington. County Emergency Management director Jim Comerford said those sirens would be checked out.
Hamilton County officials found that three of its 72 sirens didn't sound — two in Westfield and one in Sheridan.
"It's very important to test so we can catch these malfunctions and address them very quickly before we get into thunderstorm season," Westfield Fire Chief Todd Burtron said.
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