Sirens of the Eastern Bloc

[Brendan W]

I was doing a bit of reading on the Cold War recently, specifically on the other side of the Berlin Wall (East Germany, USSR, etc.). I have noticed in some videos from the former communist bloc (With an example being Stalin's funeral in 1953), sirens have been sounded. I have been curious as to find out any information / locations of these sirens. I know of a few models, but alas, my knowledge is zip on them compared to other products of the eastern bloc, such as Mosin Nagant Rifles and Trabant automobiles.

These are the models I have heard of:
S series (USSR)- S-28 and S-40. I saw a picture once, and looked like a typical siren like a Siemens or Hoermann product
Unknown model from Yugoslavia - 12 volt vehicle sirens.

So, does anyone have any pictures or information on this rather mysterious topic of the sirens of the Communist Bloc?

[PeachtreeSirens]

The model DS977 from East Germany comes to mind. Some examples are still extant and active today in Germany and the Czech Republic.

Some more research turned up this hand crank "LOT-1" from 1980s Hungary as well.

[Daniel]

There seems to be a variety of siren types in Poland, still widely used by volunteer fire departments. It seems that while pre-war Germany used special low-pitched sirens for fire calls to distinguish them from civil defense sirens, Poland used high-pitched sirens. Using the YouTube search terms "osp syrena" will show many videos of Polish fire sirens. Most are the standard 440 Hz. types found throughout Europe, but high pitch sirens are also common. Sometimes both sirens are wired together.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7ZaUYEuqOQ


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkpVu6O0-JM

[AST128_RyanK]

In regards to the Soviet Union, I've never heard of a national sirens or warning system existing. Although, it's entirely possible that the major cities such as Stalingrad/Volgograd, Mosocw, and Leingrad/St. Petersburg could have had warning systems to warn of impending nuclear attack.

[Brendan W]

In regards to the Soviet Union, I've never heard of a national sirens or warning system existing. Although, it's entirely possible that the major cities such as Stalingrad/Volgograd, Mosocw, and Leingrad/St. Petersburg could have had warning systems to warn of impending nuclear attack.

I'm willing to bet money Moscow had some CD system. I am friends with a former Soviet Army officer who lived his childhood in Moscow, and he told me that there were sirens scattered throughout the city. The last time he heard them was in Late 1982, when Leonid Brezhnev died and was given a state funeral. He told me that in the times of nuclear war, the Moscow Metro were to be re purposed into fallout shelters (which actually, on an unrelated note, was inspiration for the Metro series)

[Daniel]

Moscow siren test



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW3ZOsZ7XQA


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njmohUmOvA0

[Brendan W]

I believe I may have found a siren of some sorts in a picture. This picture is of a Soviet SU-22 ground attack aircraft in Peenemünde, which I believe was formerly in East Germany. However, I know Peenemünde was a Nazi testing ground in WWII, so maybe this could be a Third Reich era siren? It's in the top right corner of this image:

[orestis]

I believe I may have found a siren of some sorts in a picture. This picture is of a Soviet SU-22 ground attack aircraft in Peenemünde, which I believe was formerly in East Germany. However, I know Peenemünde was a Nazi testing ground in WWII, so maybe this could be a Third Reich era siren? It's in the top right corner of this image:

It looks like a Siemens.

[E57]

If that siren is a Siemens, then it would be a Fm Si 41

[Daniel]

The Russian S-40 siren (C-40 with a Cyrillic S)



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKRHVNyV_Ug



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB1ex_eV_D4