Residents of some San Francisco neighborhoods can look forward to hearing not only an English message following Tuesday’s noon siren, but also a Cantonese and maybe even Spanish message following the system formerly used to warn residents of air raids.
Fifteen emergency warning sirens around the city will broadcast in multiple languages: English, Cantonese, and Spanish. According to a memo from the Department of Emergency Management, “either a Spanish or Cantonese computer chip that will play the Tuesday noon ‘test-only’ message in that language, as well as English.” The Examiner says that , 13 of the 15 sirens across the city will also broadcast in Cantonese while 2 more will add Spanish.
The Department is considering installing additional chips in 12 more sirens throughout the city once data from the most recent census is reviewed.
Video: “The Tuesday Noon Siren,” (back before it was multi-lingual) via SFist
