Emergency Alert System Tests Begin in Boulder Creek
By Julie Horner
The Boulder Creek Volunteer Fire Department launches a weekly siren test on Tuesdays at 7:00 pm beginning on the first Tuesday in July. Boulder Creek Fire Protection District Chief Mark Bingham said, “We just want to let people know that this is going to be a regular thing and for people not to panic.”
In a statement, Boulder Creek Fire Department said that the siren will be used in the event of a disaster or large-scale emergency to alert residents to tune into local media, radio, and television stations for further information and instructions. Don’t call 9-1-1 when you hear the siren. Use 911 for life-threatening emergencies only.
Locals usually hear the siren at 7:00 am on the 4th of July to alert the community to come down to the station for the annual pancake breakfast and fundraiser prior to the 4th of July Parade that happens every year in the historic downtown district. The most recent emergency requiring the siren to be activated was during the CZU fire. “Last time we used the siren was after the evacuation order. It was the first thing we could do, and the fastest way we could get everybody’s attention and get movement evacuating the area.” During the CZU emergency, the station cycled the siren multiple times to convey the urgency to evacuate. Chief Bingham said that the Tuesday alerts will feature a single siren cycle. “It’s going to rev up, then it’s going to shut off,” Bingham said. “During the pancake breakfast you’re probably familiar with us doing three to seven cycles.”
Chief Bingham said, “This siren here is strong enough it reaches fairly close to the ends of our fire district. It reaches to the south end of Brookdale, it reaches fairly well to the golf course area up 236, it does a fairly good job getting out to Bear Creek and almost to the back of the district there, and it reaches pretty far north. You can hear the siren up on Stapp Road, hear it at the bottom of Teilh Drive, it’s pretty impressive.”
The siren is mounted on a pole at the back of the fire station roof. Stations are not required to have sirens, according to Chief Bingham, but all of the fire protection districts in the San Lorenzo Valley do; Zayante, Felton, and Boulder Creek. It takes a large electrical draw to run the siren; air is forced through a centrifuge and baffling mechanism, which creates the sound wave. According to Chief Bingham these types of sirens were common in the early 1940s, which is when the firehouse was built, and used as air raid alerts during WWII. The siren is a “push and hold” system that requires manual operation.
Julie Horner writes about the people and institutions of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Email: julie@slvpost.com
Featured photo above: Chief Mark Bingham at the Boulder Creek Fire Station. Photos by Julie Horner.
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Photos by Julie Horner
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