Update: Weather Likely to Blame for Fort Monmouth Siren

Inclement weather is the likely cause of a loud siren from Fort Monmouth that could be heard in Oceanport, Eatontown, Tinton Falls and beyond Wednesday night.

Timothy Rider, a public affairs specialist supporting the Fort Monmouth Caretaker Workforce, said Thursday that the exact cause of the alarm is unknown but the lightning and storms that rolled through Monmouth County "directs us to believe the weather was a factor."

The siren went off at approximately 8:30 p.m. and sounded intermittently for 90 minutes, Rider said. 

The alarm itself is a remnant of the Fort Monmouth Mass Notification System, which was operational when Fort Monmouth was an active Army installation. Comprised of five speakers throughout the base, it had been used in various exercises in years past.

However, the system was no longer being used, and there are no plans to test it in the future, Rider said.

A supervisor from the Caretaker Workforce came to the Fort Wednesday night to disconnect one of the five speakers from its power source, Rider said, and the remaining four speakers were disabled today.

"Residents should not expect to hear the siren again," Rider said. "We regret any disturbance or concern this may have caused in the surrounding communities."