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When an emergency happens that might require mass evacuation of the city of Menlo Park, how would residents learn of it? A plan is in the works for the Menlo Park Fire Protection District to install public address loudspeakers throughout the community.
This initiative is one of several topics that council members from the city of Menlo Park and Menlo fire district board members will explore at a 90-minute joint meeting on Tuesday, March 5.
Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman said he’s been meeting with the Menlo Park city manager for years, but this will be the first time the City Council and fire board have held a joint meeting in the 12 years he’s been chief in part, he said, due to politics and personality clashes.
“These two groups are actually going to get together and hopefully have meaningful discussions,” he said Monday, adding that he’s hoping good relationships will result. It’s helpful, he said, for the two governments “to be on the same page for the community. Government works better when we all work together.”
The fire district serves Menlo Park, Atherton, East Palo Alto and nearby unincorporated communities.
The district has been testing a movable long-range siren also capable of transmitting spoken messages in more than one language, according to Schapelhouman.
The systems can be encrypted to foil hackers, and the speakers have a range of 1 square mile, he said.
Sirens would be used in conjunction with the primary emergency alert system, currently SMC Alert messages sent to subscribers via email, phone and text by the San Mateo County Office of Emergency Services.
The meeting agenda also includes a discussion on how “transportation decisions and methodologies” impact response times. In a report, Schapelhouman lists 14 “critical emergency response routes” where congestion has a direct impact on emergency services.
The “critical” routes in Menlo Park include parts of El Camino Real; parts of Glenwood, Oak Grove and Ravenswood avenues; parts of Marsh, Middlefield and Willow roads; and parts of O’Keefe Street. Five more routes are listed as “significant,” including parts of Santa Cruz and Valparaiso avenues, Bay Road and Newbridge Street.
The group is also set to discuss a “hybrid” traffic signal proposed in front of the main fire station at 300 Middlefield Road. The signal would be installed “to support improved emergency response from the fire station and assist pedestrians to safely cross Middlefield Road,” according to the meeting agenda.
The group will also engage in a “speed round of topics of interest,” the agenda says.
The joint meeting will start at 5:30 p.m. in the Menlo Park City Council Chambers at 701 Laurel St.
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By Dave Boyce
By Dave Boyce
By Dave Boyce
Sirens are only effective in certain locations such as Hawaii or the coast (tsunamis) or parts of the mid-west (Tornado alley) where everybody knows what they mean.
So if I hear a siren in MP what does that mean? Even if they have variable tones, what does each one mean? There’s a HUGE continual educational component associated with their presence not only for residents but also for visitors. Even if I hear one and understand, what do I do?
Even ones that have the ability to announce — who’s paying attention, who has ear buds in, who’s playing music, who’s indoors with the windows shut and the TV on.
Only useful in specific locations — not worth the investment. There are other more effective ones.