To the editor:

This is in reference to Adrian Melott’s letter about the “silent sirens” during the tornado warning on May 8. I live by Food 4 Less, near 25th and Iowa, and I heard the sirens go off three different times during the storm.

The first siren I heard was from Clinton Parkway and Kasold Drive. The second one sounded like it came from the south, and the third siren I heard was from the west right before the tornado hit Lawrence.

Anyone who ever pays attention to weather warnings knows that the sirens aren’t meant for people inside buildings; it’s for people who are outside and have no access to radios or TVs. And like someone just said recently, if you watched the weather at all, it was mentioned almost daily for a week that there was a high risk for possible tornados for our area.

I do want to give a big hand for the emergency preparedness crew for keeping ahead of the storm and giving warnings as early as it did. We had minor injuries and no fatalities. People had time to find shelter.

As for the restaurant Mr. Melott was in, they should have had some sort of radio in back so that if there’s a tornado watch out and storms are developing rapidly, they could warn their customers.

Kristi Johnson,

Lawrence