Ring the alarm! Montreal tests industrial catastrophe sirens across island

A siren is seen in this photo taken on the Atlantic City, N.J. Boardwalk on June 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

Montrealers will hear a noisy interruption Friday as the city undertakes its annual siren testing at several large factories.

Don’t be alarmed, this one is only a drill – during emergencies, the wailing sirens will signal an industrial catastrophe, such as a leak of a toxic product, or a pluming cloud of noxious gas.

WHAT TO DO IN THE CASE OF AN EMERGENCY

Chemicals can spread quickly through the air. If you hear the siren, go inside, close doors and windows, and plug ventilation holes with rags.

Once you cut off access to outside air, stay away from doors and windows until the emergency is over.

If you have kids, leave them at school so as not to expose them to a toxic product.

Try to avoid using your phone except to call 911. If emergency services are trying to contact you, your line needs to be open.

Listen to the radio for instructions from authorities.

DRILL DETAILS

Between 4 and 8 p.m., the alarms will sound at eight factories:

• Merit Beef, Richelieu Metro (Montreal-North, Rivière-des-Prairies–Pointe-aux-Trembles)
• Indorama PTA Montreal (Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montreal East)
• Labatt Brewery of Canada (Lachine, LaSalle)
• Lactalis Canada (Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Lachine, LaSalle, Le Sud-Ouest, Côte-Saint-Luc, Montreal West)
• Atlantic Fisheries, Metro Richelieu (Rivière-des-Prairies–Pointe-aux-Trembles)
• Saputo Dairy Products Canada, Saint-Laurent (Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Saint-Laurent, Le Plateau-Mont-Royal)
• Saputo Dairy Products Canada, Saint-Léonard (Anjou, Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Saint-Léonard)
• Suncor Montreal Sulfur Plant (Rivière-des-Prairies–Pointe-aux-Trembles, Montreal East)

• Listen to the sound on YouTube