03/28/2026
Lengthy but worth the read for a little education regarding our severe weather siren system in Pacific. The last storm we had on March 15th I saw some confusion on Facebook and I was a bit confused myself about the timing of the use of the sirens and the CodeRed alerts.
Hal our emergency managment director has created this post to educate myself and anyone else who may not know how the system works.
Have You Heard Our Sirens Lately? Stay Informed in Several Ways.
With the arrival of spring, it is a great time to provide some insight and clarification about our Outdoor Warning Sirens (OWS) and Public Information (PI) messaging. This is an active season for weather, public inquiries, confusion, and curiosity.
Background:
Both topics fall under the oversight of the Pacific Emergency Management Director (EMD). However, a combination of policies, procedures, training, and operational plans across multiple city departments ensures their effective functioning. The EMD also works directly with the St. Louis National Weather Service staff in real-time to assess live weather conditions and make necessary decisions. Many factors influence siren activation and public messaging.
Sirens:
Our primary public safety focus is on the City of Pacific, which spans both Franklin and St. Louis counties. The city owns and operates six Outdoor Warning Sirens strategically located on the Franklin County side of our boundaries. Pacific has two sirens located in our jurisdiction from St. Louis County, and is owned and managed by that entity. A monthly test is conducted on the first Monday of each month (weather permitting) at 11:00 AM, in coordination with St. Louis County as part of a regional agreement.
Philosophy:
The main audience for the Outdoor Warning Sirens is people who are outside at the time of the alert. The sirens are not designed to reach individuals inside buildings; however, they may still be audible with closed windows. The sirens are preprogrammed with standardized messages for common concerns, such as tornadoes and thunderstorms (above certain thresholds), and signal the monthly test. Our siren model allows for real-time announcements for other conditions as well.
Additionally, the sirens are not the sole means of critical notification to the community. They serve one function within our broader emergency management public information toolkit. Everyone is encouraged to have a personal, family, or business preparedness plan that includes multiple sources of information. Examples of these include news media (TV, radio, internet), NOAA emergency radios, and other City of Pacific social media and mass notification platforms. A list of these city resources is provided below.
Triggers:
As indicated by the listed alerts, severe weather conditions are the primary triggers for OWS activation. For context, the National Weather Service (NWS) uses several descriptors: (1) Outlook – informational, (2) Advisory – prepare an action plan, (3) Watch – monitor and be ready to act, and (4) Warning – take action now. The urgency of these descriptors increases with their sequence.
These distinctions significantly influence our OWS activation decisions. We will activate the sirens for Tornado Warnings, Severe Thunderstorm Warnings (indicating winds of 70+ mph or hail of 1.75+ inches), and serious localized Hazmat scenarios (e.g., a train derailment with hazardous material plumes), particularly when the City of Pacific is directly included in the issued alerts or appears to be threatened. Conversely, we do not activate the sirens for Outlooks, Advisories, or Watches.
Per a STL Regional agreement, sirens are not activated solely by the issuance of a "basic" Severe Thunderstorm Warning. Given that Pacific spans two counties and siren jurisdictions, there can be confusion among residents on the east side if only Pacific or St. Louis County is activated, and not both simultaneously. St. Louis County covers a large area with three siren zones, and while one area may face a serious threat, another may not. We make our decisions based on what is best for our community.
Public Information (PI):
Everyone is encouraged to utilize multiple sources of forecasted and real-time emergency information. Relying on just one source may leave you uninformed at a critical time!
Traditional news media outlets like TV, radio, and cable provide reliable, real-time information. Quality PI is also available through cell phone apps and the internet. Additionally, a NOAA Weather Radio can be programmed to alert you specifically for your county.
Locally, the City of Pacific offers several pathways for sharing information with the public, ranging from planning (e.g., events or meetings) to urgent alerts (e.g., flooding or major road closures).
We encourage every resident, business, and visitor to take advantage of these resources. Specifically, here are our local PI resources:
· CodeRED Emergency Mass Notification system https://accountportal.onsolve.net/franklincountymo_pacific
· Pacific Emergency Management Agency (EMA) Facebook https://www.facebook.com/PacificMO.EMA
· Pacific EMA website https://www.pacificmo.gov/285/Emergency-Management
· Pacific Police Department Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pacific-Police-Department/1414764238785884
· City of Pacific Facebook https://www.facebook.com/cityofpacificmunicipalgovernment
· City of Pacific website https://www.pacificmo.gov/
· City of Pacific digital billboard (by City Hall)
· City of Pacific Quarterly Newsletter
Our EM policies specify which one or combination of the above pathways will be activated to share PI contingent on the circumstances, criticality, and severity of needing attention. Thus, we encourage everyone to be connected to them all.
We take public safety and emergency management planning seriously and offer numerous pathways for you to be informed. In turn, we ask that you do your part for yourself, your family/pets, employees, and neighbors to have a plan on what you would do “in the event of” and maintain active connections to PI.
As always, should you have a life-threatening issue, contact 9-1-1, and for non-emergency matters, 636-257-2424 is available 24/7. Questions, comments, and suggestions may be addressed to Hal Schulman, EMD, [email protected].
