An old civil defense air raid siren at the La Conner Fire Department will be put to use again as a way summon volunteer firefighters should their emergency pagers not work.
The siren, which hasn’t been used full time for several years, will be put back into round-the-clock operation today, said Fire Chief Dan Taylor. He said the handheld electronic pagers carried by volunteer firefighters don’t always go off when they are supposed to, and the siren provides another, more noticeable, emergency alert.
“We hope it will help,” Taylor said. Taylor told the La Council Town Council in August that volunteer firefighter response rates drop when the siren is not used.
He tested response rates by shutting off the siren between Oct. 1, 2014, and July 31, 2015.
During that time, the fire department had 38 emergency calls where one volunteer responded, Taylor said. In the same span of time the previous year, when the siren was in use, the department had 13 calls where one volunteer responded.
In recent years, the fire department’s use of the siren has caused frustration for inn owners in tourism-dependent La Conner, who say the siren’s howl spooks guests.
Taylor said he understands those concerns, but he said using the siren is a matter of public safety. He added that the siren will be turned off when firefighters stay overnight at the Chilberg Road station. The siren is controlled remotely by radio signal from the Skagit 911 dispatch center, he said.