Siren fixed after it failed to sound during testing in Lake Township

6/10/2010

Emergency officials said a siren at Lake Township's fire station on Ayers Road was fixed Thursday afternoon after it failed to sound during a countywide testing.

Lake Township fire Chief Todd Walters said authorities called in a technician Thursday afternoon. The siren was not working because of an electrical problem.

It was not known whether any other sirens failed to work during the testing that lasted about three minutes and started at noon Thursday.

The Lake Township site where the siren didn't work is closest location to an area of Millbury that was among the hardest hit in the township.

Chief Walters said the siren at the station on Ayers Road was tested a week ago and was working when the tornado hit on Saturday night.

Other sirens that were activated in Lake Township were at the Municipal Building in Millbury, Walbridge behind the police department, and East Broadway in Moline.

At a press conference Thursday morning, the township's police and fire chiefs encouraged people to also prepare for future storms by having a battery-operated radio, as well as food and water, on hand at all times.

Ohio Department of Transportation Director Jolene Molitoris also was in Wood County Thursday afternoon where she was speaking with officials and touring storm-ravaged areas.

At the end of Thursday, the volunteer reception centers that were opened by United Way in response to the weekend's storms will be closed.

"The community's response has been absolutely tremendous," Bill Kitson, United Way of Greater Toledo president and CEO, said in a statement. "In the past three days, we have deployed more than 1,600 volunteers to help with clean-up efforts. I'm truly at a loss for words."

The process, however, has reached a point where most of the volunteer work has become very targeted and specialized so the reception centers, which provided assignments for general volunteers, are closing. The centers were at Grace United Methodist Church at 601 East Boundary St. in Perrysburg and at the Mainstreet Church at 705 North Main St. in Walbridge.

United Way officials said that if people still wish to volunteer and think their specialized skills can be used in restoration efforts, they should call 2-1-1 and give their personal information for future reference.