Brno is close to completing the construction of a modern integrated warning and information system to alert residents to potential dangers in 22 city districts. There will be 78 sirens in areas at risk of flooding, most of which will be able to transmit voice information. Mobile sirens will be handed over to three city districts for use by local volunteer fire brigade units. Photo: Sirens / For illustrative purposes. Credit: Freepik.
Brno, Feb 12 (BD) – “The municipal warning system was outdated and above all did not cover the whole endangered area. Now it has been completed and modernized, we will be able to warn more than 30,000 inhabitants of flood areas in the event of danger,” said Mayor of Brno Markéta Vaňková (ODS).
The replacement of 28 old sirens, the modernization of 30 existing ones and the installation of 20 new sirens began in January 2019. The installation work also included the construction of a network of radio signal transducers, through which the operational status of all sirens will be controlled and monitored from the broadcast site.
“As well as replacing and installing sirens, we have also established a main broadcasting station in the Brno City Police building. The local information system was modernized in Tuřany and Chrlice. We will transport three mobile sirens to these districts and to Černovice, which I will hand over to their mayors, for use by local volunteer firefighters, who have already been trained to use them,” said First Deputy Mayor Petr Hladík (KDU-CSL).
The new integrated system meets the requirements of sirens nationwide, ie. starting from one central operation centre at the Fire Rescue Service of the South Moravian Region. At the same time, the system can be accessed remotely by other branches of the city authorities, depending on need. The system may be used, for example, by the Flood Commission of the City of Brno for individual city districts, but can also serve for other civic emergencies.
“The construction of the warning system will cost CZK 28 million. We received support from European subsidies (specifically from the Environmental Operational Program) for 70% of the cost (CZK 18 million),” added Hladík .
The project also included the production of 22 digital flood maps of city districts which lie on the flood plain, available here.
More information on the project can be found at www.voda.brno.cz.
Reports on the safety of the population in crisis situations can be found on the KRIZPORT portal.