Siren Testing At Selfridge Unrelated To Mayan Apocalypse

HARRISON TWP. (CBS Detroit) Selfridge Air National Guard Base is issuing a notice: Don't panic when you hear sirens today. It's not the Mayan apocalypse -- just a test of the siren system.

Airmen at Selfridge in Harrison Township will be conducting a series of tests from 9 to 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 21, utilizing the "giant voice" and siren system on the base. Those on and around the base may hear a variety of sirens and announcements on the same morning thousands believe the world will end because it marks the end of the Mayan calendar.

"The testing and the so-called Mayan Apocalypse are unrelated," said Dan Heaton, Selfridge spokesman. "It just so happens that they fall on the same day. Since we have a 365-day mission, we need to move forward with testing, exercises, etc., in an expedient fashion."

The "giant voice" – a series of outdoor loudspeakers on the base – and the sirens can be used to notify personnel on the base of a variety of emergency situations.

Comprised of approximately 1,600 personnel and flying both the A-10 Thunderbolt II and the KC-135 Stratotanker, the 127th Wing supports Air Mobility Command, Air Combat Command and Air Force Special Operation Command by providing highly-skilled Airmen to missions domestically and overseas. The 127th Wing is the host unit at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, which marked its 95th year of continuous military air operations in 2012.