MILFORD, Del.- Officials are considering relocating fire sirens from downtown to the outskirts of the city.
According to the city manager, Mark Whitfield, there are three fire sirens in Milford. However, only one of them is operating.
A license agreement has been presented to the Carlisle Fire Company to move the fire sirens just outside city limits and make at least four of them operational.
Over the years several complaints have piled up about the loud and demanding sirens, but, in a Monday night meeting Carlisle Fire Co. did not reach an agreement with the city.
Whitfield said relocating the sirens would benefit both the community and the fire company.
"In order to get the decibel level to get to the edges of town it has to be extremely loud so I believe we will be able to actually reduce some of the decibel levels if we move them," said Whitfield. "Right now with the signal in the center of town it doesn't broadcast out very far and most of our firemen actually live outside the city limits so it seemed logical to look at relocating the sirens."
One Milford neighbor suggested other forms of communication.
"I was wondering if there will be an alternative like pagers or you know some kind of quieter way to notify people," said Chris who has lived in town for over a decade. "If they are getting complaints now I can only see them getting more complaints with four sirens."
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) recommends that there are at least two reliable means to alert firefighters.
In 2019, Carlisle Fire Co. released a statement justifying the need for the sirens: "While we rely on other forms of communication such as pagers and cell phones, they have their short comings. Batteries die, pagers and cell phones are not on the person. The siren gets the firefighters attention at any time."
Although some neighbors may find the siren annoying, others say they understand the need for it and would support its relocation.
Rick Countryman has lived in Milford since he was five. He said he's grown accustomed to the siren going off.
"It makes sense for it to be loud," said Countryman. "I mean they have to hear it so I think it makes more sense for them to go to the outskirts of town so it's not as loud in town."
Carlisle Fire Co. officials say they will be exploring other options for the future of the Milford siren.