KOAM TV 7 Joplin and PittsburgTornado siren testing changes for Joplin

Tornado siren testing changes for Joplin

Joplin city council gives the green light to improvements for its storm siren system.

Last night the council approved $270,000 in upgrades for the sirens and emergency officials outlined how testing will be conducted starting March 5.

These improvements come after the National Weather Service's study about the May tornado.

In the report the NWS says people became accustomed to the sirens through testing.  This caused residents to not take the signals seriously until the second one sounded.

Currently sirens are tested every Monday morning at 10 a.m.  Emergency officials will now only test on every first and third Monday morning.

The $270,000 improvements will allow for silent testing, solar technology and mobile activation.

Officials say the silent testing is a huge improvement.