CONTRIBUTED GRAPHIC Green Mountain is one of the unincorporated areas that would benefit the most from new tornado sirens, according to Marshall County Emergency Management Director Kim Elder. The cost to add or replace nine sirens in incorporated cities and add new ones in the unincorporated areas of the county is estimated at $734,000.

After the storms Marshalltown and Marshall County have endured over the last few years, it’s more important than ever that the tornado sirens are fully functional and able to reach as many residents as possible.

Over the last several months, Marshall County Emergency Management Director Kim Elder has been providing updates to the board of supervisors on the grant application process for a project that would add or replace nine of the sirens in incorporated communities and add 12 more in unincorporated areas of the county along with a controller system to be installed at the county communications center and three digital repeaters, or digipeaters, at a total cost of around $734,000.

Elder is hopeful that most of the expense will be covered through a Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) grant, but she did mention the potential need to break the project into two sections during the most recent supervisors meeting. She said the incorporated city sirens are set in stone if they get the grant, but she is still researching placement spots for the unincorporated areas to make sure they are in the best possible locations.

“That’s the thing with all of these. We’re looking at the most populated areas first but also the areas that have the most outdoor activities, too, because that’s who we’re trying to warn is those people who are outside biking on trails, enjoying the campgrounds, golfing and baseball — things that we’re outside for,” Elder said. “That’s where these really come in handy.”

Marshall County 911 Communications Center Director Rhonda Braudis shared similar sentiments about the importance of effective siren systems to warn the public of impending danger.

“It’s essential. It really is, and to be able to have something… trying to mitigate and be able to get the sirens to areas that don’t regularly hear the sirens (is crucial),” Braudis said. “There’s a lot of things that go into play with this, so this is a pretty vital project. And unfortunately, Marshall County has been subject to a lot of disasters.”

The cost for the cities is estimated at about $270,000, and the cost for unincorporated areas would be about $464,000. According to Elder, states that are more disaster-prone are more likely to qualify for the federal funding, and the breakdown is 75 percent FEMA, 10 percent from the state and the final 15 percent from the local entities involved.

“Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a low price tag. They do cost, but if you look at the lifesaving measures vs. the cost, life always wins,” Braudis said. “You’ve got to look at what value you’re getting from this, and the value is high.”

The second course of action Elder mentioned was maxing out at about $533,000 in FEMA hazard mitigation funding to cover about two-thirds of the project — all nine of the city sirens and six or seven of the 12 in the rural areas — and saving the rest for a later date using either local county dollars or applying for additional grants. American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars have also been suggested as a potential source of funding.

“The sooner we can get the information back from the board of supervisors, I want to make sure the state pushes this up to FEMA so that we don’t lose out and get behind someone else,” she said. “Right now, we’re pretty close to first in line for Iowa. We got our grant turned in to the state, and now we just need to fine tune it.”

The waiting period to hear back from FEMA is about 60 to 90 days, and if Marshall County is awarded the grant, it will have approximately a year to finish it. On the other hand, if the money isn’t available now, it could be a two-to-three year wait for the next grant.

The board of supervisors did not take any official action on the matter during the most recent meeting.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.