Across much of Aurora, there are dozens of outdoor emergency sirens. It’s technology that’s been used for decades, but one the city doesn’t necessarily rely on anymore for public safety.
“I would say the siren system is a secondary tool outside of our primary notification system,” said Matt Chapman, Emergency Manager for Aurora. “They’re built as an all-hazard, but 99.9% of the time they’re associated with tornado warnings.”
The primary notifications come from tools like reverse 911 messages, Chapman explained, along with social and local media and weather alert apps. Since that technology is faster than an old siren, the newer neighborhoods in Aurora don’t have sirens at all.
“It’s not as efficient as some of the tools we have now,” Chapman told CBS News Colorado’s Kelly Werthmann.
The most current map of Aurora’s outdoor emergency warning system is from 2016. It shows where the 57 sirens around the city are located – only five are east of E-470 despite the development of new communities and thousands of homes.
“You have not put in new sirens in 10 years?” Werthmann asked.
“No. Nope,” Chapman replied.
“Why’s that?”
“We’ve really put time, effort, and attention into those primary notification tools that we have.”
Yet some residents of the newer neighborhoods – like Aurora Highlands – believe there should be sirens in their east Aurora community.
“We have sirens across the highway, why not here?” questioned Ravi Stephens, who moved to new the community three years ago. “By the airport, we get a lot of tornadoes.”
If there were a tornado warning for the Aurora Highlands today, thousands of people would not hear the traditional warning tones. For homeowner Valente Quinero, that sounds just fine.
“Everybody’s got a cell phone, so just get an alert through the phone,” he said.
Stephens disagrees – just because most people have a cell phone or access to social media, he says, doesn’t mean they pay attention.
“If I’m doing something else, taking care of my kid, I may not be paying attention to my phone,” he said.
As new neighborhoods continue to develop, Chapman said it’s not completely out of the question for more emergency sirens to be installed. He added it’s something the city is talking about, as they have for the last decade.
Whalen Siren and Fire Stations by CBS News Colorado on Scribd
“It’s all part of the conversation of how many tools we have and then how do we want to develop those out into the future,” he said.
In the meantime, the city suggests people download the Code Red app or sign up for alerts through the city’s website.
