YCSO to Back Up OPD on Olney Tornado Siren

The Olney City Council approved a request Nov. 10 from Interim Police Chief Autumn Thames to give the Young County Sheriff ’s Office access to activate the city’s tornado siren, expanding emergency coverage and ensuring faster warnings during severe weather.

Chief Thames asked the Council to authorize a $350 expenditure to complete the necessary technical setup. Currently, the siren can be activated only through a button on the Olney dispatcher’s console or from a handheld radio in a patrol car.

Because the Olney Police Department does not have a dispatcher on duty around the clock, Chief Thames said the change was necessary to protect residents during overnight and early-morning storms.

“The reason I want to expand access is because our dispatcher is not here 24 hours a day,” she said. “Young County is manned 24 hours a day, and just in case of an emergency they can hit it and it can go off in seconds.”

During severe weather, Olney police officers and firefighters act as storm spotters, monitoring conditions in real time. Allowing the Sheriff ’s Office to activate the siren would add a critical layer of redundancy, Chief Thames said, especially if radio systems fail or if local personnel are tied up in the field.

“It’s another backup so we have 24-hour coverage,” she said. “We can notify citizens within seconds to seek shelter.”