ALLEGAN, MI (WKZO-AM/FM) – Something that most residents take for granted won’t be there for the Otsego/Plainwell area right now.
Allegan County Emergency Management Coordinator Sarah Clark said in a department statement on Wednesday, June 12, that the outdoor warning sirens for southeast Allegan County are down. The monthly test last Friday of the system “did not activate as expected,” she explained.
A malfunction at the VHF equipment site near Otsego was seen as the major issue, but getting it repaired may not be that easy. “Due to the complexity of the issue, a definitive timeline for restoration of the sirens’ functionality is currently unavailable,” Clark admitted.
With severe weather in Thursday afternoon’s forecast, such a breakdown could cause issues. “While some areas have the capability for manual activation, it is recommended that individuals have multiple methods for receiving emergency notifications,” the coordinator said. “Our priority is the safety and well-being of all residents, and we are working diligently to resolve this issue as quickly as possible.”
Alternatives such as monitoring local news/weather updates, along with NOAA weather radio and mobile alert apps, are being urged for the residents in southeast Allegan County affected by this outage. Other warning sirens in the county are not affected by this malfunction.
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