Staff Reports
Bartholomew County activated its tornado sirens at about noon Tuesday after first responders reported a funnel cloud in the northern part of the county. Spotters and sheriff deputies sent to the area were unable to locate it and the sirens were turned off.
Sheriff deputies sent to the Taylorsville area said they saw rain, but no funnel clouds. Several speculated that the sightings were cold air funnels in rain-filled clouds in the area. No damage was reported in the area following the sighting.
After the sighting, the National Weather Service issued a statement saying cold air funnels were possible Tuesday in Indiana.
Cold air funnels are associated with thunderstorms or showers that form in deep, cold core and large-scale low pressure systems. These funnel clouds are smooth and narrow, according to the National Weather Service.
The parent storm or shower is not particularly tall or intense and funnel clouds normally protrude a few hundred feet downward from the parent clouds, rotate or spin like a top and last only a few minutes before dissipating, National Weather Service officials said.
In rare cases when the cold air funnel does reach the ground, it usually causes only minor damage, according to the National Weather Service.
Shannan Hinton, Bartholomew County Emergency Management director, said the county-wide sirens were activated after multiple reports from first responders of a funnel cloud being spotted north of the airport toward the Taylorsville area. Protocol for the county’s dispatch center is for them to set the sirens off in this type of event. Protocol also stipulates that all sirens are sounded, Hinton said.
At the time this occurred, Hinton said the county had not received the Special Weather Statement from the National Weather Service of the potential for cold air funnels today.
Hinton said an Everbridge alert did not go out with the activation, but should have or would have gone out had the National Weather Service issued a watch or warning. She said emergency officials will discuss the sequence of events and the response.
“I understand that there was a lot of confusion as to why the sirens were going off especially when many people were seeing sunshine and no threat of rain or storms,” Hinton said. “Please note that we are reviewing what occurred and looking for any improvements that can be made for the future.”
