New Emergency Sirens Installed In Berkeley

BERKELEY, CA — A new outdoor warning system in Berkeley will use a wailing siren tone and voice message to warn the public in the event of an emergency such as a wildfire or tsunami, the city announced last week

The siren and voice message would signal that people in some or all parts of Berkeley should take emergency protective action, which would differ depending on the emergency, the city said in a news release issued last week.

Details of any emergency would also be available on the city’s emergency map and through various city alert systems, including AC Alert, Berkeley's a text and email alert system.

"A wildfire might prompt a message to evacuate part or all of the hills," the city explained. "A tsunami message would direct people to get onto land, and out of marina and the shoreline, away from the Bay. A different emergency might tell particular neighborhood to shelter-in-place."

An example of the emergency siren and subsequent voice message is available on YouTube.

According to the city, the new warning system, which currently consists of 10 sirens mounted on buildings from the Marina to the hills, is flexible for a variety of disasters and will reach people who are outdoors, possibly away from their cell phones should an emergency arise.

Five more sirens are expected to be installed in early 2024, the city said.

"The goal is to amplify — and guide people to — the principal emergency tools while being flexible enough to respond to a variety of different disasters, be it a tsunami or wildfire," the city said.

The siren system, which is tied to the PG&E grid, and also has a solar-powered battery backups, were paid for with funds from the voter approved Measure FF, the city said.

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