Warning Sirens in the 1970s

[WaxOnFeckOff]

I'm on a FB page for the area I grew up and people are reminiscing about the regular testing (and malicious setting off) of warning sirens. I remember these from my childhood, they were like the air raid sirens of the 2nd world war but were intended as "the 4 minute warning" alarm of a nuclear attack during the cold war.

It was always quite chilling when you heard one during a test, even more so when some delinquent had broken in and set it off unexpectedly!

Did anyone else have these where they were?

Yes, I did, but if my hazy memory is right, the same sirens were used to call in the part-time fire brigade when needed. (I am actually going back to the '60's here... )

I must tell DC about it later as I don't think they realise that we also had things to worry about when we were growing up! I lived in Edinburgh so I am not sure we had any part time fire brigade, though I don't think there was a station anywhere near where I lived.

I also have vague memories of practicing hiding under our desks, but the teacher must have made it fun because I wasn't traumatised at the thought of imminent death in a fiery holocaust... No, we had nothing to worry about, growing up.

I was born in Edinburgh in 1972, lived there all through the 70s and 80s. Don't remember sirens at all. Although there was a disused one on the roof of the school where my mum taught.

Have very hazy memories of these going off randomly in South London in the 60's.

I never believed they would sound a four minute warning anyway. I always reckoned they'd leave us to fry unnanounced to avoid the inevitable chaos

How much chaos (or indeed, protecting and surviving) could be achieved in four minutes anyway? I recall joking, in the early '80's, about what you'd do with your last four minutes, none of the responses were ever do-able.

I don't remember sirens but do remember an ex of mine talking about hearing one when he was up a big hill somewhere down south, possibly Brighton way, and thinking that was it, some time in the 80s.

Tbh I kind of took it as read that we'd all die from a nuclear bomb anyway. We watched Threads at school and I can recall documentaries about the nuclear winter from almost my first memory point. Then a few years later we were all going to die of AIDS as well

Fun times.

I'm 57 and do vaguely remember the sirens unless it is the power of suggestion

I do remember when I was at Uni in St Andrews having a plan to drive towards Leuchars (as an air base, a potential target) if the 4 minute warning sounded.

Ah, AIDS. I got my tombstone leaflet in the same postal delivery as a bunch of "congratulations on the birth of your first child" cards. Now it's easily treated, even cured. Amazing advances.

You must have been at St Andrews just as I left Cupar to move to Edinburgh, prettybird, forty years ago...

We still have them around here. One is the emergancy alarm they test every morning for a nuclear plant. The other they test one afternoon a week which is for a chemical plant. And the other is 1st thing something to do with the docks.

Problem was everyone so used to it that when it actually went off everyone just ignored it and thought was a test turns out they had a leak.

I heard this twice last Christmas Day in the North East of England, thankfully my husband heard it too as I didn't quite believe it. Quite creepy.

In fairness to the tombstone, hirples, it did hammer home the importance of barrier contraception to our generation, which is something that's missing in messages to young sexually active people since. STI transmission is through the roof now compared to what it was in the late 80s/much of the 90s.

There are still sirens used for flood warnings in the Upper Calder valley in West Yorkshire.

Think we might be on the same group. Saw that thread about the sirens. My siblings remember them.

Ooh groovee, begins with an O?

Yes. Although when my work used an agency they couldn't pronounce it and I had to ask them to spell it. Not sure how you can't pronounce it, very straight forward. 😂

Late 70's/early 80's primary school close to a small RAF base. I remember them regularly "testing" the sirens. I didn't realise it was anything to do with nuclear warning, thought they were just checking they still worked!

I lived in Germany (British Army camp) in the early 80's, there used to be practice drills and everytime one went off we were scared incase it meant the Russians were invading. I remember running home screaming once the Russians are coming!

Are you in Teesside Not quite?

They still do a test run for the BP at Grangemouth. I think it's once a year.

There is a chemical plant in my town that has a siren practise once a year. They promote this across the local media before hand. I’m not entirely sure what they are practising for... ie why they would need to sound the siren in anger as it were.,

They still have them at Portsmouth Dockyard and test them regularly. They announce it in advance but it's still a very eerie noise.

My Mum lives in Teesside and I know of some there as well

How much chaos (or indeed, protecting and surviving) could be achieved in four minutes anyway?

LOL, yes! I used to imagine everyone out in the streets waving their arms and going 'don't panic, don't panic' Dad's Army stylee

Ah I'd seen threads. So I knew that everyone would involuntarily piss themselves, give birth to mutant babies and then die a horrible death.

I remember it in the 90s. West of Scotland.