Sunday, April 12, 1998

Public dialogue needed about tornado sirens

Two Holy Week tornadoes in Alabama were among the deadliest in recent years. There's a striking similarity in that both struck when church services were in progress. But there is a striking difference also.

Most of the deaths in Piedmont, Ala., on Palm Sunday in 1994 came when a deadly twister struck Goshen United Methodist Church during worship service. Members -- without the benefit of tornado warning sirens -- were caught unaware. The victims, including the young daughter of the minister, paid the price.

The tornado that struck western Jefferson County, Ala., a few days ago hit when many churches were holding, or just finishing, Wednesday night services. At the Open Door Church at Birmingport, the 60 congregants heard a warning siren and gathered in an inside hall. After the tornado passed, that hallway was the only room still standing -- and the members were survivors. Without a warning siren, many might have met the same fate as those at Goshen four years earlier.

As tornado victims searched through rubble in Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia Thursday, members of the Abilene City Council met to consider a tornado warning system. City officials, including City Manager Roy McDaniel, shared the same tired anecdotes they have used for a decade to deflect serious consideration of safety precautions.

The citizens of Abilene deserve a more intelligent discourse. At the meeting, McDaniel said he had not received a single request for tornado sirens from a citizen this year. If you care, call or write City Hall and share your sentiments in letters to the editor. We welcome a public dialogue.