Everly to get new siren

The Everly City Council is hoping that going from two emergency sirens to one will be a good thing.

Members on Monday unanimously approved the purchase of a new siren from Blue Valley Public Safety for $25,554.45. With the addition of a battery backup, the total bill will be just under $28,500.

The siren will pump out 130 decibels of noise at 100 feet and is capable of covering the whole town. Only one of the city’s two emergency sirens works, and both will be replaced by the new setup.

Blue Valley representative Bruce Fisher was on hand to explain the siren and its features. It comes with a two-year warranty on the control box and a five-year warranty on the siren head itself.

The apparatus will be installed behind Everly Municipal Utilities’ building on Main Street. Fisher was confident the siren would be able to adequately alert residents during an emergency, as it has a 5,000-foot coverage radius.

“That’s pretty close to the whole town,” he said. “It’s for outdoor warning, but that’s not to say people won’t hear it in their houses. When I replace [100-decibel units] with 130s, I get comments asking if we can turn it down.”

As per the council’s wishes, the siren will have a noon and 6 p.m. whistle.

“I get a lot of comments from people saying they miss hearing that,” said Council Member Tara Patrick.

The new siren will be installed later this summer. It will be paid for with LOST revenue or funds allocated to the city by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

In other business, the council agreed to move forward with the purchase of a generator for the Hap Ketelsen Community Center. Once installed, it will be used during emergency power outage situations when the facility is opened as a shelter.

The council withheld an official decision on the matter pending additional investigation. Patrick would like the generator to be capable of powering the fire station as well, which might necessitate a larger piece of equipment and higher installation fees. A 60-kilowatt generator is $36,390.77 and the 80-kilowatt generator is $44,529.05.

Like the siren, the generator will be paid for with LOST revenue or ARPA funds, according to discussion.