Biloxi to test emergency sirens on Wednesday

Residents and business owners throughout Biloxi will hear a series of loud tones on the first Wednesday of each month, when the city tests its emergency warning system.

Beginning at noon, Biloxi will be testing 10 siren towers that have been erected throughout the city. The towers use three specific tones to notify citizens of impending danger of a tornado or hurricane.

Typically, the tones will be triggered by the National Weather Service issuing tornado or hurricane warnings for the area, according to Fire Battalion Chief Michelle Crowley, the city’s emergency manager.

All 10 towers can be used simultaneously or individually, depending on the magnitude of the event. During the Wednesday tests, all 10 towers will emit back-to-back 60-second samples of each of the two tones.

To hear a 25-second sample of the tones, click on the links below:

— Tornado, uses a sound known as alert tone.

Once residents hear the tones, they should seek safe shelter, and tune to local media for more information, or call the Biloxi Police Department at 228-392-0641. The city also will relay information through its Bmail service and website.

The locations of the towers are the Lopez-Quave Public Safety Center on Porter Avenue; at fire stations on Howard Avenue, Elder Street, Pass Road, Veterans Avenue, West Oaklawn Road, Woolmarket Road, at the city’s two fire stations on Popp’s Ferry Road; and at a Coast Electric substation on Old Highway 67.