Mansfield purchases 4 tornado sirens after discovering it had none [Video]

MANSFIELD, Ohio — While some communties have decided to get rid of tornado sirens in recent years, Richland County is doing the opposite.

“There are still many individuals that rely on those sirens,” said Rebecca Owens, the county’s Emergency Management Agency director.

“Some communities feel that the sirens are very antiquated, and they are to an extent. However, we have a large portion of the county that is very rural,” said Owens.

Owens said there are 44 sirens in the in the county that are under the umbrella of the county’s responsibility and said the county has spent over $50,000 trying to get 28 of those sirens back up to full function.

The county is also in the process of changing the sirens over to a digital system, which will cost $190,000. That would make them more reliable, according to Owens.

The City of Mansfield is also investing in tornado …