Documents
A collection of key documents that govern the design, testing, and regulation of outdoor warning systems.
Key Documents for Sirens
The history of outdoor warning sirens began with church bells used to warn the local population about an urgent need such as fire or flood. These then transition to the early civil defense sirens which were used to warn the public of impending attack. From there they expanded to include weather warnings for tornadoes. It wasn’t until the near disaster at Three-Mile Island that federal regulations governing siren systems were developed. Today, the only regulatory information for sirens all pertain to nuclear power plants. While these regulations are specific to that industry, the guidance provided is based on best practices which can and should be used for other siren applications. Below is a list of the most important documents, both technical and regulatory, that deal with outdoor warning sirens.
Title
Author,
Agency
Date
Notes
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NUREG-0654
Criteria for Preparation and Evaluation of Radiological Emergency Response Plans and Preparedness in Support of Nuclear Power Plants
NRC and FEMA
Sep 1980
The primary regulatory document governing the creation of the a Design Report for an entire alert and notification system. This only pertains to nuclear plants, but has some valuable information for any system.
FEMA REP-10
Guide for the Evaluation of Alert and Notification Systems for Nuclear Power Plants
FEMA
Nov 1985
This document supplements NUREG-0654 and provides some clarification.
CPG 1-17
Outdoor Warning System Guide
FEMA
Mar 1980
One of the key documents, created largely from the Bolt, Beranek and Newman Outdoor Warning Systems Guide from the previous year. This is where most of the key acoustic elements are introduced, including the guidance to have a system than can achieve 70 dBC in high population areas (ares with more than 2,000 people per square mile) and 60 dBC in low population areas.
FEMA – Outdoor Warning Systems
Technical Bulletin (Version 2.0)
FEMA
Jan 2006
This Technical Bulletin provides improved guidance over CPG 1-17, and includes some details about determining range predictions for sirens.
Outdoor Warning Systems Guide
Bolt Beranek and Newman Inc.
June 1979
Some of the first technical work into determining how to design and build an outdoor warning system. Interesting from a historical standpoint, it also has some useful information.
NUREG/CR-2654
Bolt Beranek and Newman Inc.
Sep 1982
This is a report that provides details on how to analyze an outdoor warning system. While much of this information is made obsolete by modern computer modeling, it does provide a way to estimate siren coverage using just a map, pencil, and calculator.