The City of St. Charles currently operates and maintains thirteen outdoor storm warning sirens. These sirens are located throughout the city to provide for maximum notification in the event of severe weather.

Should severe weather occur, the sirens are activated by the St. Charles County Emergency Management Agency. In the absence of inclement weather, the warning sirens are tested the first Monday of each month at 9:00 am.

Maintenance of the sirens is done on a routine basis and upon notification of a malfunction. Nine of our sirens have the ability to remotely test themselves each day and report the test results electronically to the County Emergency Management Agency. If a malfunction is reported, maintenance is performed accordingly.

Like all outdoor warning sirens, our sirens are meant to be heard by people that may be outdoors and unsheltered. The sirens are not designed to be heard by people that are indoors and therefore sheltered.

In the event that you hear an outdoor warning siren activate, you should seek shelter immediately. The best shelter would be in the basement of a building away from windows or other openings. You should turn on your radio or television to obtain additional information and instructions.

To learn more about warning systems and city/county emergency operations please visit the St. Charles County Emergency Management website.