FRANKLIN COUNTY -- Central Ohioans expect to hear tornado sirens on Wednesday at noon during a statewide test, but with dark clouds looming, warmer air and rain in the area, those warning sirens sounded around Franklin County Tuesday morning.
The Franklin County Emergency Management Agency said an industrial siren test at Georgia Pacific on the city's South Side set off other sirens in the county at 10 a.m., NBC 4's Tanya Hutchins reported.
"Normally the siren goes off on a Wednesday at noon, but today being a Tuesday, it went off, which was unusual, emitting a different sound than we're accustomed to," said Doug Boggs, who works near a siren.
Franklin County EMA is investigating the mistake but assured the public the computer glitch was only with the testing system and not the actual tornado siren system that alerts residents to danger.
"We're assuring the citizens of the community there's no problem with the sirens. They're working effectively. There's no problem with the sirens. They're working effectively. It was merely a glitch with our testing protocol," said Darrel Koerber, Franklin County EMA Deputy Director.
Officials said the sirens sounded for 18 seconds and said that a real warning will last longer.
"We're absolutely ready to go and we've tested our sirens. The sirens are working perfectly. We are prepared for whatever may happen tomorrow or in the future," Koerber said.
Franklin County has 157 sirens but is working on setting up 10 more in Columbus and six more in Pleasant Township.
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