Kingdom City emergency siren disabled

Officials uncertain when will be fixed

Residents of the Kingdom City area once again will be without advance warning of severe weather for the foreseeable future.

The village's emergency siren has been disabled, and city officials are uncertain how long it will be out of commission for repairs.

Kevin Wilkerson with public works said it appears that sometime over the weekend "something large must have backed into it."

Wilkerson said it is unclear exactly when or how the siren came to be damaged. None of the nearby residents witnessed any kind of accident involving the pole, and the damage was not noticed until Monday.

He said representatives with Outdoor Warning Consultants, the company that makes the siren were in town Wednesday morning to assess the damage and determine "what is salvageable and what is not," but did not give a timetable regarding repairs.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.