ALTONA, Ill. — A new storm siren is helping make sure all residents in the Village of Altona are prepared for severe weather.
Until recently, Altona only had one storm siren. The current one was installed around 20 years ago outside the fire department, but residents said it wasn't loud enough.
"I live about in the middle of town, and we just never could hear it," said Donna Naslund who's lived in Altona for 27 years. "We never knew when it went off."
Village Board President Derrick Appell said it was back in December 2020 when the issue was first brought up. The storm siren blared during bad weather, but a resident living on the north side of town said she never heard it.
"I think it was an issue that everyone knew, but nobody spoke up," Appell said. "And so with her, when she had mentioned something, it was a storm it was like, well maybe we'll looking into this type of thing."
He pointed out that technically storm sirens aren't meant to be heard indoors, they're just meant to warn people who are outside. However, sometimes the faint storm siren alarm got overpowered by other noises such as passing trains.
The second, new storm siren was installed just a few weeks ago at a baseball field on the north side.
Naslund said now when it goes off, you can't miss it, even when you're inside.
"Hopefully, everything's gonna be a lot safer for the community," Appell said. "It's very important. I mean, it's life saving."
The warning is especially important considering tornados have touched down in nearby areas in the past, including an F3 tornado in Galva in April 1996, just 10 miles away from Altona.
"I was here when that happened," Naslund said. "Yeah, that was kind of scary, because we knew it was very close."
"You never know what happens, you can never be too safe," Appell said. "Just like when a fire department gets a brand new truck, hopefully they never have to use it. Same with an ambulance. But it's something that you want there. If it's needed, you're glad you had it."
Appell said they also purchased handheld devices for the weather spotters, so now the storm sirens can be triggered remotely and simultaneously instead of someone turning them on from the fire station.
Altona received an $18,000 USDA Grant to fund part of the $33,000 project.