By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
City council members on Tuesday approved moving forward on a recommendation to
buy and install an emergency outdoor warning system that would include the placement
of at least 14 sirens throughout the city.
The council voted after hearing a presentation on the system from City Purchasing Agent
Luis Menchaca and asking a number of questions about the siren system.
Menchaca presented the council with four options. He told the council the cost of each
option and what the city would receive for that price.
options for the purchase and installation of an outdoor siren warning system to notify area
residents of impending emergencies. (Photo by Karen Gleason)
Menchaca said the first option, priced at $17,471.64, would “replace three dead encoders,
radios and power supplies with one central system, CentrAlert.”
The second option, costing $127,686.50, would “replace cabinets on five Whelen brand
sirens” to give the city five functioning sirens within two to three months. Menchaca said
those five sirens would be located at 100 Darrell and Cerezo, 100 Nanette and Hamilton
Lane, 1104 W. Tenth St., 772 Qualia and 714 Top Drive.
The third option, at a cost of $374,516.59, would “replace nine Federal and Sentra sirens
with Whelen sirens using existing poles,” Menchaca said. Those nine sirens would be
placed at 200 Century Way, Cantu (Road) and Wildcat Drive, 2003 N. Main St., 1000
block of North Bedell Avenue, 305 Las Vacas St., 310 E. Chapoy St., Brodbent and
Highway 277, Hamilton Lane and Highway 90 and 313 Fir St.
The fourth option, at a cost of $98,502.02, would add two sirens in locations of the city’s
choosing.
Menchaca recognized Kenneth Clouse, vice president of American Communications,
who was in the audience to answer any questions from the council.
Menchaca also reminded the council, “Experts recommend citizens have multiple
methods of obtaining weather warnings, including a mobile/online platform to obtain
notifications, outdoor sirens and NOAA weather radios.”
He also emphasized several times that outdoor warning sirens are not meant to be heard
indoors.
Menchaca told the council, “Staff is recommending the approval of Options One, Two
and Three for a cost of $519,674.73. This would provide 14 working sirens throughout
the community which can be activated using one central system.
The outdoor sirens
would allow emergency management to use tone, custom professionally-recorded
messages in a sound booth or live public address.”
After Menchaca’s presentation, City Manager Shawna Burkhart told the council, “Just to
let everyone know, I have sent a request to Rep. (Eddie) Morales’ office regarding our
need to be on any funding stream that may come down during the special legislative
session that addresses flooding and notification.”
Councilwoman Carmen Gutierrez asked if the siren system could be purchased and
installed in phases, and Burkhart said she would like to hold onto the $177,000 the city currently has on hand for sirens in case there is a city match required for any grant funds
coming from the state.
Gutierrez also asked if any of the city’s sirens were operational, and Menchaca replied
none of them are currently in operation.
Counciman Jesus Lopez Jr. asked some questions about the sirens’ reach, and Clouse
answered his questions, noting that there are more powerful sirens, but that a siren’s
reach depends also on terrain and terrain features like trees and buildings.
Gutierrez said she would like to see a siren placed close to the school district’s newest
elementary school in north Del Rio, adding that the school had been the site of an
evacuation after the city received less than an inch of rain.
“I would consider strongly the location (of a siren) as close to that school as we can,”
Gutierrez said.
Mayor Pro-tem Jim DeReus asked about the number of Del Rio residents signed up for
the city’s current cell phone notification system, called Regroup.
City Emergency Management Coordinator Amanda Aldaco said,
“We have about 3,500
signed up right now.”
DeReus said at one time, Del Rio Fire Department Chief David Harrison had spoken to
the council about sending firefighters door-to-door to help residents sign up for the
Regroup notifications, adding, “I don’t remember the last time we talked about doing
that, but either they’re not doing that or they’re not being very successful. So that’s not
working, and we need to do something. . . I would love to go straight to an app or a phone
notification, but I just don’t think that’s working.”
Aldaco said she recently attended an event hosted by the Queen City Belles and “went
table to table” to sign people up for the notification.
DeReus asked how many people were at the event, and Aldaco said about 300 attended,
and she got “about 25” persons to sign up for the notifications.
“That only leaves about 31,000 people that we need to contact, and that’s the problem,”
DeReus said.
Aldaco said she and the city’s communications and marketing director have been
working with the school district to encourage students to sign up for the notifications.
Mayor Al Arreola said he wanted to know how many sirens the city had “in the old
days.”
Aldaco said the city had 17, then Arreola asked, “Who did the study on where to install
these (new sirens)?”
Aldaco said most of the new sirens would be in the same places they were in previously.
Councilman Randy Quiñones asked Burkhart about a recent disaster preparedness
meeting with the county and whether or not sirens were discussed.
Burkhart said sirens were discussed at the meeting, adding that before any money for
sirens is requested from the county, she needs to know how much money, if any, the city
may be able to get from the state.
“Do you think that they would want to be a part of this?” Quiñones asked.
“I do believe they would want to be a partner in this effort,” the city manager replied.
Arreola called for a motion to direct staff to continue searching for funds for an
emergency warning system. Councilman J.P. Sanchez made the motion, with
Councilwoman Ernestina “Tina” Martinez giving the second.
Sanchez clarified he would like to see the city pursue the first three options presented by
Menchaca, for a total of $520,000, and seek state funding for the purchases.
The council then voted unanimously to approve Sanchez’s motion.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com .
