WHIGHAM — The City of Whigham will be the second municipality in Grady County to receive its own outdoor warning siren following the county commissioners’ vote.

Commissioners voted unanimously earlier this month to approve the first step in what Emergency Management Agency Director Richard Phillips said is a plan to eventually cover the entire county with weather warning sirens.

“All of these storms and tornadoes that we’ve got coming through just seem to be getting worse and worse,” Phillips told the commissioners.

To counter that, the EMA director said he plans to place a new warning siren each year in strategic locations across the county with a goal of eventually gaining total coverage. The completed system could then work as a grid, providing warnings to citizens of impending danger. The siren signals could work together to travel through the county as the dangerous weather makes its way across.

Phillips said his likely next target to receive a warning siren will be Shiver School in the north side of the county.

Cairo is already home to one weather warning siren, which commissioner LaFaye Copeland said serves an effective safety device.

“I know it works in the city,” she said.

“If you save one life (then it’s worth it),” added Commissioner Ray Prince.

Half of the $13,000 outdoor warning system will be split between the county and the City of Whigham. The other half will be paid for using an EMA grant.