Renick not eligible for sirens

March 15, 2006
By: Sarah Smithies
State Capital Bureau

Storms killed four Missourians on Sunday in Renick, a town without warning sirens.

The town's mayor says Renick should be eligible for those sirens.

Sarah Smithies has more from the State Capitol.

Story:
RunTime:
OutCue: SOC

Mayor Darren Barfield says he applied for a grant to install a siren in the town.

But the US Department of Agriculture told him the town's residents make too much money. The grants are for towns with a median income under $30000 --in Renick, the median is $30,300.

Actuality:
RunTime:
OutCue:
Contents:

"I don't want to point fingers, but it just seems, you know, kind of mysterious that it's just, you know, a few hundred dollars out of our range that we can qualify."

Barfield says the town can't afford the siren on it's own -- the cheapest sirens cost $7000.

From Jefferson City, I'm Sarah Smithies

#####

In a town where tornados killed four people Sunday, the mayor is calling for a change.

Sarah Smithies has more from the state capitol.

Story:
RunTime:
OutCue: SOC

The town of Renick, MO, doesn't have tornado sirens. Mayor Darren Barfield has asked for a grant to install a siren, but the USDA says the town is too rich,

With a median income of $30,300, the town is $300 over the maximum. A statistic that Barfield questions.

Actuality:
RunTime:
OutCue:
Contents:

"I know most of the people in this community. They're working forty, fifty hours a week and still barely getting by."

The cheapest sirens cost about $7000.

From Jefferson City, I'm Sarah Smithies.


[Missouri Digital News is produced by the State Government Reporting Program of the Missouri School of Journalism (home of the The Journalist's Creed) with support from the Missouri Press Association, the Missouri Broadcasters' Association, KMOX Radio in St. Louis and KSMU Radio in Springfield.
You can contact MDN at .
MDN was designed and is managed by Phill Brooks]