Le Sueur County Emergency Management Director Tammy Stewig said that dispatchers accidentally sounded off the county's sirens today, Thursday, April 9, at 1:45 p.m. thinking it was Severe Weather Awareness Week (SWAW), which is actually April 13-17, 2026.
On Thursday, April 16, of SWAW, almost every corner of the state will have two rounds of sirens sounding, one at 1:45 p.m. and one at 6:45 p.m., for businesses and residents to practice tornado safety procedures.
The National Weather Service does not sound sirens, but rather individual county and city municipalities. There is no set guideline for siren usage in the state of Minnesota, but a best practices guide for sounding sirens was created by the Association of Minnesota Emergency Managers a few years ago, including severe weather, which most areas have adopted. Those best practices related to severe weather include severe thunderstorm warnings with winds in excess of 80 mph or greater or hail 2.75 inches in diameter or greater, a tornado warning, or an observed tornado (which may not have yet been warned by the National Weather Service). Sirens that have the capability of different sounds, under best practices, use a steady tone for civil emergencies, such as tornado warnings, and use a rising and falling tone for civil defense purposes.
As you may note, the best practices do not sound for all types of severe weather, and sounding sirens in each community might be different. You should look to your local county and city for their criteria for sounding sirens. As a general rule of thumb though, most municipalities in the state will only sound their sirens for severe weather once per warning for a limited time, and there is not an "all clear" siren sounded. If you hear an additional period of time with sirens sounding, it likely means a new threat has been issued.
Outdoor warning sirens are meant as a public service for people who are outside and unaware of conditions to warn them that they should go inside and seek further information, not something to be utilized as a main source of warning or to be heard indoors. Purchasing a weather radio, which receives warnings directly from the National Weather Service, is suggested as an option indoors as one warning source for severe weather. They can be programmed for specific locations and threats, and they typically offer battery backup.
See below for next week's SWAW schedule.
Severe Weather Awareness Week Schedule
Monday, April 13: Alerts and warnings.
Tuesday, April 14: Severe weather, lighting, and hail.
Wednesday, April 15: Floods.
Thursday, April 16: Tornadoes, with tornado drills at 1:45 p.m. and 6:45 p.m.
Friday, April 17: Extreme Heat.
For more information on SWAW, visit: https://www.weather.gov/mpx/swaw