Weather Warning Alerts

Gary Wisdom Director of Emergency Management/ Fire Chief 817-426-9170 Fax: 817-426-9380 Email: kmenchaca@burlesontx.com

City revises policy for severe weather notification; educates public about
warning systems

A policy outlining guidelines for the activation of the Outdoor Warning System (OWS) and the Connect-CTY emergency phone notification system was approved by Burleson City Council members on May 22, 2008.

Stacy Singleton, then director of emergency operations for the city, consulted with the National Weather Service (NWS) and received input from the Burleson Independent School District as he formulated the new guidelines. an Alert Zone, a box drawnaround the City of Burleson's city limits, is part of the revision. The boundaries of that box will change as the city limits change.

Play the Weather Warnings Slideshow now. (12 KB) Hear a sample tornado alert. Hear a sample severe weather warning.

The City will notify citizens of tornados and severe weather within the Alert Zone.  The notification will be made using the City's OWS (commonly referred to as the "siren system") and Connect-CTY.

Tornado alerts for Connect-CTY and the OWS will be activated when the NWS issues a tornado warning that includes any part of the Alert Zone.  In the absence of a NWS-issued tornado warning, the tornado alert will be activated when tornado activity in or approaching the Alert Zone has been reported by a reliable source.

On September 8, 2009, the Burleson City Council approved a minute order that changes the severe thunderstorm alert factors to match that of the North Central Texas Council of Governments (COG). Severe weather alerts for both systems will be activated when the NWS or a reliable source forecasts destructive winds in excess of 70 miles per hour and/or hail that is 1-inch or larger.

A reliable source is defined as a Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) storm spotter, city personnel trained in Skywarn, or personnel at the Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

Connect-CTY alerts are pre-recorded telephone messages made to the publicly-listed phone numbers of residents and businesses in the city.  Individuals and businesses who have registered online (go to www.burlesontx.com and click on the "sign up now" button to register) will receive the pre-recorded voice message on their cellular phone. Residents can get the alert in writing via an email or a  text message.

The siren system has both voice and sound (siren, horns ).  There are two types of weather alerts delivered by the OWS:

• Tornado alert: This alert includes a voice message, followed by a three-minute siren, and ends with a repeat of the voice message.
• Severe weather alert: This alert includes a voice message, followed by a 30 second discontinuous horn, and ends with a repeat of the voice message.

The City hopes the difference in the sounds will allow the public to distinguish the siren sound of a tornado alert from the discontinuous horn of a severe weather/thunderstorm alert. Listen to samples now by viewing the Weather Warnings PowerPoint Slideshow or by selecting one of alert .wav files above.

The outdoor warning system is not designed to be heard indoors. Citizens who are inside a structure should not rely on the outdoor warning system for notification because the outdoor system may not be heard due to inside noise (TV, fans, air conditioner, or radio/stereo/home theater) or distance from the outdoor warning speaker unit.  During the late night and early morning hours, people may be asleep and not hear the system's alert.

When the outdoor warning system is activated, citizens should not go outside to hear the message or call 911 to ask why the system is activated. Citizens should go inside, seek shelter in an interior room of their home and tune to a weather radio or TV/radio for more information.

Citizens are their own best protection. City officials encourage all citizens to buy a weather radio with S.A.M.E. technology (for programming to receive local alerts).  Weather radios are the best way to stay informed about tornado and severe weather.

To learn more about emergency preparedness, visit www.knowhat2do.com.

For more information, call the emergency management office at 817-426-9170