Siren to sound Saturday after 3-month silence

The midday silence in Snoqualmie is about to end.

The city's beloved noon siren will sound its wail starting Saturday after a three-month hiatus.

The siren sat perched for decades atop the old fire station. But its fate came into question in May, when the station was demolished to make way for a new city hall. Residents fought to save the half-century-old siren, and last month one local business owner offered to keep it on the roof of her downtown furniture store.

But without a new clock to chart its daily rhythm, the siren was mute. It needed a $1,200 electronic timer to get it going again. After a Seattle Times story about the siren ran on July 20, local residents stepped forward and donated the money to buy the new timer.

"It amazes me, really," said Ed Wentz, a former volunteer firefighter who used to help set the old siren timer in the 1950s. "I thought the only people who were interested in it was me and the other firemen."

Lee Briggs, the former chief of Snoqualmie's volunteer fire department, said he collected about $750 in his sister's memory. Norma Prien died last month at 86, and in her final days, asked that people donate to save the siren instead of buying flowers for her funeral.

One donor submitted $2, and another $100. Chuck Krona kicked in the rest of the money. A Snoqualmie resident since 1956, Krona said he did it to keep a part of the town's history alive.

From Monday through Saturday, the siren faithfully bellowed for six seconds at noon. It originally sounded to test the fire department's warning system. But over time, it became as constant as the sunrise, and another nostalgic remnant of Snoqualmie's mill-town past.

"I miss hearing it every day," Krona said. "You always knew when it was noon."

On Saturday, a celebration party with lemonade and cookies will be held — at noon, of course — at Mignone Interiors, the siren's new home. It will coincide with the annual Railroad Days event.

The timer has been purchased and is on its way, Wentz said. But unfortunately, it may not make it in time for Saturday, he said.

So the siren will be flipped on with a manual switch. Kristi Wood, owner of Mignone Interiors, said she'll personally sound the siren every day until the timer arrives.

Sonia Krishnan: 206-515-5546 or skrishnan@seattletimes.com