ZAYANTE FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT

The Zayante Fire Protection District utiilization of Outdoor Warning Sirens dates back to the 1940’s. Today, the refurbished Siren at Fire Station 1 is used to warn residents, visitors, and those passing through the fire district of an imminent need to evacuate.

The Outdoor Warning Siren concept is used throughout the United States to warn people outside of homes of impending danger from Tornado, Tsunami, Wildfire and Hazardous Materials releases.

In September 2023, Fire Chief Jeff Maxwell launched a campaign to raise funds to replace the failed Lompico Siren that dated back to 1942. Zayante Firefighters hosted a benefit concert at Felton Music Hall, conducted two open house events and raised over $8,000 from the community to aid in the project.

The Zayante Fire District has sought funding through grants and in 2023 was awarded a Fiscal Year 2024 State Homeland Security Grant for $49,839 dollars going towards the $66,526 package price for one siren. The project was approved locally in collaboration with representatives from Law, Fire, and Public Health. The California Office of Emergency Services and FEMA have both approved the project and the Grant Award has been accepted by the Board of Supervisors on August 19, 2025 who designated the County Office of Response, Recovery and Resilience (OR3) as the grant administrator.

The Fire District additionally applied for a second siren grant award for fiscal year 2025 that was initially accepted locally in 2024 for $70,000. The County has since determined participation in this current grant cycle is too onerous to continue and the project was cancelled.

Once funding is accessible the Fire District will engage a contractor for installation of a new Outdoor Warning Siren(s) in Lompico.

Locating a Siren is a big decision. After evaluating (2) sound propogation models produced by the manufacturer Federal Signal Corporation, using a total of (4) locations, and in conjunction with ancedotal feedback from monthly siren testing since October of 2023 ; The District has recognized the sound altering impact of weather, temperature, humidity, wind, vegetation and topography. All factors affect the propogation of sound and siting a siren requires established access to property and electrical utilities. The Fire District is working with the San Lorenzo Valley Water District to co-locate a siren within existing property improvements at the Lewis Tank Site on West Drive. Additional site locations at the Kaski and Madrone Water Storage Tanks have been evaluated but are unsuitable. If financially feasible a second siren is targeted for fire station 2 at Lompico and Carrol Ave.