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Kendall County Residents Say Tornado Siren Didn't Go Off During Storm

OSWEGO, Ill. (CBS) -- Some Oswego residents said they would have had no idea there was a possible tornado heading toward them on Wednesday if they weren't listening to the radio, because a warning siren on the north side of town didn't go off.

WBBM Newsradio's Mike Krauser reports a tornado warning bulletin for Kendall County came in from the National Weather Service at 5:15 p.m., and Newsradio 780 reported the storm development on air.

Tornado Siren Did Not Work

Oswego resident Mel Snyder was listening in his car while he was headed home, and heard the warning for local residents to take cover immediately.

Sirens sounded elsewhere in Oswego and other parts of Kendall County, but Snyder said the one at the entrance to his subdivision was silent, so the radio was his only warning.

"There should be some other way of communicating, with an effective management system, and in this case, that siren did not go off," he said. "The siren is visible from the street. You can't miss it. There was no sound."

The Kendall County Sheriff's office said the sirens were activated countywide, and an employee suggested that particular siren might have malfunctioned.

Snyder said the siren was working fine during recent monthly tests.

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