Federal Signal Thunderbolt 1003 Siren Test | Full Alert | Bement, IL | 8/5/25

Location: Bement Fire Protection District System: Piatt County Test time: 1st Tuesday of the month at 10 AM Enthusiasts present: Tommy (‪@buckeyenotifications‬) Back in August, we decided to bring Andrew with us on a little trip to record some tests out west for a couple days. Our first stop of the trip was Bement, Illinois for their 2 Thunderbolts. Andrew had us drop him off at the 4/5, while Tommy and I went to this beautifully refurbished 1003. We had been wanting to hear this siren for over a year at this point, and we actually attempted it back in October 2024, but Piatt County ended up not testing that day due to a transmission equipment outage. Thankfully, this time around, they toned out right at 10, and the sirens activated with no issues. For a brief second, you can hear Bement's Vortex wind up, although it quickly gets drowned out by this beast. This definitely ranks up there among the loudest Thunderbolts I've been to, probably making my top 5. From my memory and experience, I'd say this was just a hair louder than the 'bolt at Station 50 (in Clermont County, Ohio), but not quite as loud as the one at Amelia Elementary (also in Clermont County). Anyway, Lansaw Warning Systems did an outstanding job with this refurb, and I'm very glad that we were finally able to hear this in person. Enjoy! Tight shot: Canon EOS R50 Wide shot: Canon PowerShot SX60 HS Rule of Thirds shot: Panasonic Lumix DC-FZ80 Audio: Zoom H1n