Whelen Vortex R4 Siren Test - Full Alert - West Des Moines, Iowa

Date: 5/2/20
Location: Jordan Creek and Mills Civic, West Des Moines, Iowa
Temp: 70°F
Signal: 3 minute alert
Units Heard:
Whelen Vortex R4 (main unit) - 275ft
Whelen Vortex R4 - 1.3 miles
Whelen Vortex R4 - 1.4 miles
Whelen Vortex R4 - 1.4 miles
Whelen WPS-4004 - 1.6 miles
Whelen Vortex R4 - 1.8 miles

For the first test of today, Max and I decided to go to this traffic light mounted ex-finback Vortex in West Des Moines. This is one of seventeen R4s/4004s in WDM, making it the largest of the five WestCom Dispatch systems, and the third largest county-wide. There were a few light rainstorms that developed in the area shortly before the test which made us kind of nervous, but tones rolled through at noon and she went. It turned out to be a D-864, which was a first for both of us. This thing was pretty quiet up close, but seems to carry very far. You can hear many of WDM’s other Whelens in the distance throughout the test. That’s all I have to say regarding this. Enjoy!

WestCom Dispatch tests their siren system on the first Saturday of every month at 12PM, weather permitting. They control the sirens in the cities of Clive, Norwalk, Urbandale, West Des Moines, and Waukee.

Primary Shot: Canon PowerShot SX540 HS
Secondary Shot: Canon Vixia HF R82
Audio: Canon PowerShot SX540 HS

© Michael A. 2020
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