The Siren Board

hobbeekid wrote:Hey if the tsunami were big enough it'll wash into the bay and push all the way up the Sacramento delta and river all the way to Shasta dam flooding the whole area Stockton included so that tsunami theory might have some validity, it would have to be on a cataclysmic scale though lol......

Considering that Shasta Dam is at an elevation of around 900 feet, that would be one hell of a wave.

Back to the topic, has anyone ever determined exactly what those Model 5-shaped sirens in Sacramento actually are? These only seem to be found in California.

Los Angeles apparently has some of those "Model 5" knockoffs. I guess someone will just have to take it down from the pole in order to determine who made it.

hobbeekid wrote:Hey if the tsunami were big enough it'll wash into the bay and push all the way up the Sacramento delta and river all the way to Shasta dam flooding the whole area Stockton included so that tsunami theory might have some validity, it would have to be on a cataclysmic scale though lol......

It would take a meteor to create a tsunami that big (earthquake induced tsunamis don't get over 40 feet high). In that case, a siren would be the least of my worries.

Daniel wrote:Back to the topic, has anyone ever determined exactly what those Model 5-shaped sirens in Sacramento actually are? These only seem to be found in California.

From what I've heard, they're Decots. I saw some pictures somewhere of where they were installing them in Sacramento (black & white photos), and they have the typical dual rows of long ports, like that of a Decot. If I find those photos again, I'll post them here.

thunderbolt1000 wrote:The 1003 is a tsunami siren and yes they still use it.

Thunderbolt1000t,

Please refrain from posting replies up to questions unless you absolutely know the answer, thank you.

Actually, doesn't Sacramento experience flooding? I think I remember seeing something on one of The Weather Channel's shows about it before.

If those sirens are Decot's they must be extremely old then, considering the last decot was made in 1941-42.

I'll ask Bill if they are Decots, he should know.

JasonC wrote:

thunderbolt1000 wrote:The 1003 is a tsunami siren and yes they still use it.

Thunderbolt1000t,

Please refrain from posting replies up to questions unless you absolutely know the answer, thank you.

This also applies to those who have no concept of central California's topography.

As far as the Decot theory goes, they look very similar to photos of known Decots being installed in Seattle in 1951:

One siren I remember seeing in Sacramento when I was a kid was something that looked like a single-headed HOR or perhaps a Hedberg. It was on the roof of an office building on one of the downtown streets near the Wang Building, not far from I-5. Does anyone remember this one?

Wow, those look very similiar to the super rare prototype Decots and had to be made by Decot's son after he died. Jmarcoz in PA restored a Decot very similiar to those, Any pictures of the rotor from slightly above would verify if they are the prototype design. They had a special lightweight rotor made to reduce weight and conserve materials since they were designed shortly before WWII.